Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

‘No further proceedings’ to be taken against man after runaway car injured firefighters at Stonehaven rail crash site

Scene of Stonehaven Rail crash.
The scene of the Stonehaven rail crash in August 2020. Image: DC Thomson

The Crown Office has confirmed “no further proceedings” will be taken against a man whose car rolled down a hill and crashed into firefighters at the Stonehaven rail crash site.

Rail worker Neil Bonar’s car was alleged to have injured four firefighters when he left the handbrake off his vehicle as emergency services responded to the ongoing emergency.

It is claimed the incident caused two firefighters to plunge into a river and be carried downstream at the scene of the fatal rail crash on August 12 2020.

Driver Brett McCullough, conductor Donald Dinnie and passenger Christopher Stuchbury died when the 06:38 Aberdeen to Glasgow Queen Street train struck gravel on the track and derailed.

Headshots of Stonehaven rail crash victims Brett McCullough, Christopher Stuchbury, and Donald Dinnie
Left to Right: Brett McCullough, Christopher Stuchbury, and Donald Dinnie.

The Crown Office has now confirmed that it has taken the decision that no further action will be taken against Mr Bonar at this time.

A Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal spokesman said: “It is the duty of the Crown to keep cases under review.

“After full and careful consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case, the Procurator Fiscal decided that there should be no further proceedings taken at this time.

“The Crown reserves the right to proceed in the future.”

Car allegedly rolled down hill into firefighters at Stonehaven rail crash site

A huge emergency service response was sparked by the derailment at Carmont, just south of Stonehaven.

Bonar was alleged to have parked his car at nearby Elfhill Farm.

It was claimed the 65-year-old left his vehicle unattended at the edge of a steep embankment and failed to properly secure it by applying the handbrake or engaging the gears.

The charge stated it rolled down the embankment, struck and injured four firefighters at the bottom and caused two of them to be propelled into a river and carried downstream.

Bonar, of Maitland Street, Leven, Fife, was not personally present when the case against him was treated as “not called” by the fiscal depute at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.

Police previously confirmed they were investigating the incident, which resulted in two firefighters being taken to the hospital and two others treated at the scene.

Paul Stewart, assistant chief officer of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, said in the wake of the incident: “It was clearly a very difficult and hazardous scene, and it remains so, and we take the safety of our crews very seriously indeed.

“We did have the unfortunate event of four firefighters receiving minor injuries at the scene, two of which attended hospital for a precautionary check-up and two of which remained at the scene.”

Commenting on the latest development, a Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman told the Press and Journal: “We note the decision of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.

“This was a challenging incident and our thoughts remain with all of those who were affected by this tragedy.”

The 06:54 from Stonehaven: Analysis, investigation and how a community pulled together in the face of tragedy