Didcot ten years on: police remains committed to investigation

Didcot A power station on 23 February 2016 illuminated by the emergency services as they attend the partial collapse which killed four (Image credit: Reuters)

The incident at Didcot on 23 February 2016 cost the lives of demolition workers Michael Collings, Ken Cresswell, Christopher Huxtable and John Shaw.

Working alongside the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the police force expects to complete its investigation and formally request a charging decision from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the end of the year.

Deputy Chief Constable Ben Snuggs said, “On the tenth anniversary of the tragic Didcot Power Station partial collapse, our thoughts are firmly with Michael, Ken, Christopher and John’s family and friends.

“We remain confident our investigation for this complex case will be finalised this year, as we said last month, to ensure the families get the answers they deserve.”

The press release included statements from the families who lost their loved ones when Didcot A power plant, in Oxfordshire, partially collapsed during preparatory works for its demolition.

The Cresswell family said, “As we mark ten years since the Didcot Power Station collapse that took the life of our beloved dad, grandad, and husband, Ken Cresswell, the pain remains as deep and as raw as it was on 23 February 2016. The irreplaceable void left in our lives is something we carry every single day.

“Together, as a family, we stand strong in our ongoing fight for justice. We fully support Thames Valley Police, the Health and Safety Executive, and the Crown Prosecution Service as the investigation enters its final stages. After a decade of heartache and waiting, we can only hope that the right thing is done and that justice is finally achieved for all the men who never came home.

The Collings family said in a statement, “Ten years have passed since you left us, and somehow the world has kept moving, even when it felt impossible. Time will never erase you. Your laughter and your smile taught us that joy matters, that life is there to be lived, and that a good laugh can carry us through the hardest moments. We miss your smile. We miss your laugh. And we carry them with us, always.”

Sandra Huxtable, Christopher’s mother, said, “This has been the hardest ten years of my life. No mother expects to lose a child. Finally, we will get justice so Christopher can rest in peace with his brother Jonathan. I wish to thank Thames Valley Police for all their support.”

“To be sitting here at 21, when I was just 11 years old on 23rd February 2016, feels unreal. It feels like forever since the day I lost a huge part of me, my amazing dad,” added Tia Huxtable, Christopher’s daughter. “Ten years on, and there is still no justice for our men. But I truly believe the day will come when justice is finally served - for our men, for us families, and for every family affected by that devastating day. We must continue to raise awareness worldwide so that a disaster like this never happens again.”

Kirsty Shaw, John’s daughter, commented, “Ten years ago today, our hard-working, loving dad and husband went to work and never returned home. Ten years have passed, and yet we still have no answers as to why what happened, happened.

“Time may go on for everyone else; however, my family and I still remember every single moment from that day - from the power station collapse up to the moment he was found and laid to rest.

“It’s been a living hell for the past ten years and will continue to be until we receive justice and answers as to why our dad, my mum’s husband - and now his granddaughter, whom he was robbed of meeting - is no longer here, all because he went to work on Tuesday 23 February 2016.”