SEVERAL people remain in hospital in a serious condition after a Rangers supporters bus was involved in a road crash which killed a man in Ayrshire on Saturday.
Emergency services rushed to the scene on the A76 near Crossroads Roundabout before the Ibrox club was due to take on Partick Thistle.
The bus carrying 36 Rangers fans, from the Nith Valley Loyal Supporters Club, crashed and overturned hours before the match.
The tragic accident claimed the life of 39-year-old Ryan Baird, from Sanquhar in Dumfries, who is originally from Larne in Northern Ireland.
A total of 18 people were taken to hospital, and Police Scotland confirmed four people remained in hospital overnight.
Two men, aged 19 and 61, and a 64-year-old woman remain in hospital.
Medical staff describe their condition as serious but not life threatening.
A 67-year-old man, however, was released on Sunday.
Rangers legend Richard Gough lead the tributes for Ryan, saying the club had lost one of their family.
He posted a picture of himself with Ryan on Facebook in the emotional tribute which said: “We have lost one of our Rangers family.
“My heart goes out to the family that has lost one of their own and I hope for a quick recovery of those that have been taken to hospital.”
Ryan’s heartbroken fiancee Sarah Hughes said: “I miss him so much already.”
She paid tribute to Ryan on Facebook by uploading a poem written by a fellow fan.
The club also issued a statement saying, “Rangers Football Club are deeply saddened to learn of a dreadful accident involving a coach carrying supporters to the match at Ibrox.
“Our profound condolences go to the gentleman who has died and our thoughts are with his family. We are also thinking of those who have been injured and taken to hospital.”
Rangers Managing Director Stewart Robertson added: “Everyone at the football club and every member of our Rangers family is thinking of all of those caught up in this terrible accident. “Clearly this is a deeply distressing time and the board extend our deepest sympathies and concerns.
“While winning the match was of vital importance everything that happened on the pitch between 3pm and 5pm pales into insignificance in light of this awful news.”
Old Firm rivals Celtic also sent their condolences to the fans affected.
In a statement, the club said: “In relation to news of the accident involving Rangers supporters on their way to the match, everyone at Celtic sends our sincere condolences following the death of a supporter.
“We would like of course to also offer our best wishes to all those involved in this accident. We understand a significant number of people have been affected and our thoughts are very much with them at what will be a difficult time for all these supporters and their families.”
Police Scotland confirmed that there probe into the crash is still continuing.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “The coach was removed from the location last night for further examination and enquiries into establishing the circumstances of the crash are ongoing. “Anyone with information is asked to contact officers at Irvine Police Office on 101.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel