Michaela Yates feels she has been “robbed” of her partner Tony Sheil
Luke Jarmyn
South Scotland reporter, BBC Scotland news website
For Tony Sheil’s partner Michaela Yates and their two daughters, nothing has been right since the night of 24 November last year.
“I could see on Tony’s phone tracker he was three minutes away, then it stopped,” she recalled.
“I wondered if the wi-fi was playing up, but I quickly felt something wasn’t right.”
Tony never drove those last few minutes to the family home in Kirkcowan just off the A75, becoming the latest fatality on the road across Dumfries and Galloway.
Despite the grief, and the pain of having their lives turned upside down, Michaela and her two young daughters, Samantha-Jane and Natasha, have started a campaign to see the route upgraded.
Image source, Family handout
Tony Sheil with daughters Natasha, Samantha-Jane, and partner Michaela
More than 300 people have already signed the family’s online petition called “Changes to the A75”, and the hope is to get hundreds more.
The family’s plea is that the major carriageway that links Stranraer and the ferry ports at Cairnryan to Gretna and beyond can be made safer and ideally be dualled throughout its 95 miles.
It echoes repeated similar calls over the decades.
Now, Tony’s family have added their voices to the cause in the 51-year-old’s memory, with the hope that “no-one goes through the horror we’ve suffered”.
Tony was driving home from work when his Ford Transit collided with a Volvo lorry near Shennanton Bridge at just after 18:00.
A police investigation into the accident is ongoing.
A75 ‘not fit for purpose’
His eldest daughter, 20-year-old Samantha-Jane, has been left so bereft she can’t bring herself to drive since her dad’s death.
But she is heading the campaign.
She said: “Without dad we’re a bit lost. He did everything for us and I just didn’t think I would be carrying his coffin at 19. Tash was only 16.
“It was a horrible feeling. We are a bit lost without him, as a family it was always the four of us.
“Now our home is quiet, it’s not the same without hearing dad cutting the grass, being out in the garden, working on the house and making some noise. It just feels weird now.”
Image source, Family handout
Tony and Michaela were teenage sweethearts
The family are struggling on, but in many ways their lives stopped that night in November.
Samantha-Jane describes the A75 as “a dreadful road, that’s been neglected for far too long” and believes “it’s a disgrace that it’s not a dual carriageway”.
She added: “You would think the authorities would be working on the road, and maintaining it but they are not.”
The number of potholes, width of the road for HGVs and speed limits are also of concern on a route she calls “not fit for purpose”.
The family want the A75 to be upgraded
Originally from St Helens, the family moved to Kirkcowan, near Newton Stewart, less than two years ago.
It was Tony’s dream since being a young boy exploring the Isle of Skye to live near the west coast of Scotland, and, after persuading his family, they “were just settling in” to rural life.
A builder by trade, Tony became a foreman at Eco Gen Contractors in Stranraer, while the family spent last summer picnicking around the Rhins of Galloway and watching the ferries go past.
What was hoped to be a dream move has become anything but, being reminded every day of their trauma with the family home overlooking the A75 on one of its narrower curving stretches.
Samantha-Jane doesn’t want others to suffer the same fate
Michaela and Tony were teenage sweethearts, and the 53-year-old feels “robbed of 30 more years” together.
She said: “For me and my girls Tony was everything, I can’t really put it into words but he was the centre of our family and it’s horrible what we’re going through.
“Tony was just a friendly guy, he would do anything for anyone.
“We’d be eating dinner or spending time as a family, and if he knew someone was in trouble or having an issue, he’d be off to help.”
Image source, Family handout
Tony Sheil with daughters Samantha-Jane and Natasha
The festive season and birthdays have gone uncelebrated, with Tony’s funeral just three days before Christmas. Michaela said they “have their good days and bad days”.
The family home is a reminder, not just of Tony, but of their stalled plans for the future.
His beloved Ford Escort sits stationary, the fireplace and bathrooms unfinished, and the materials for a balcony gathering dust.
Samantha-Jane says she “wishes Dad could have walked away and come home”, and campaigning for upgrades to the A75 is the least they can do.
They would like see speed cameras or average speed cameras and more new cat’s eyes installed on the road, potholes filled in and bends made wider and safer.
Transport Scotland said it recognised the importance of the route as a “critical link” and was working to secure £8m announced recently by the UK government for upgrades.
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