Wallace Hunter’s son Keir said he believed his father’s death was “entirely preventable”
By Graeme Ogston
BBC Scotland Tayside and Central reporter
The son of a pensioner who died from scalding injuries in a hotel bath has described the frantic 90-minute attempt to rescue him as a “horror story”.
Wallace Hunter died at the Pitlochry Hydro in 2019 after being trapped in the bath, while guests and emergency services tried to smash in the door.
Efforts to help the 75-year-old were hampered by the door opening outwards and being bolted from the inside.
Keir Hunter has launched a civil action ahead of a fatal accident inquiry.
He said it was “unfathomable” that no criminal charges had been brought over his father’s death.
The company which owned the hotel at the time has since been liquidated.
Speaking publicly for the first time about his father’s death, Keir said the tragedy was “what we wake up thinking about and what we go to bed thinking about”.
Wallace Hunter, who was from Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire, was staying at the Perthshire hotel with his wife Janice at the time of the incident in December 2019.
Keir said: “He was spending time with his wife, exploring Scotland, a country that he loved.
“Something like this is entirely preventable and should not have happened.”
Wallace Hunter was unable to get out of the scalding bath, with rescue efforts hampered by the bolted bathroom door.
Image source, Google
The incident happened at the Pitlochry Hydro Hotel in December 2019
Keir said his father had been conscious and talking at the beginning.
“Had they been able to get to him quickly there’s no question he would still be here,” he said.
“The guests, then the police, were smashing fire extinguishers off the door, it was chaos. And that was on this side of the door.
“My family ruminate on my dad’s experience on the other side of the door, facing his fate and knowing that people were trying to get to him.
“The hour-and-a-half became a horror story and the experience my father endured is hard to comprehend.”
‘A massive toll’
Mr Hunter was found to have suffered third-degree burns to 83% of his body after fire crews finally managed to break down the door.
Keir said: “The horror continued when finally having got my dad out, the emergency services tried in vain to perform CPR.
“My mother witnessed the whole thing. As well as losing her husband, the experience has taken a massive toll on her.
“The police officers who I spoke to, who are obviously hardened to accidents, told me it was horrific and it was the worst incident they had ever attended.”
Keir is seeking damages, claiming negligence on the part of the hotel’s previous operators.
Image source, Hunter family
Wallace Hunter was described by his son as a much-loved father and grandfather
Keir and his legal team said they had uncovered online complaints about the hotel’s hot water system prior to his father’s death.
He said one 2016 review complained that the water in the bath area “went scalding hot, then freezing cold”.
He added: “So here you have a hotel accepting elderly and more vulnerable guests while there are claims about the hot water.
“There’s no way this should not have been resolved prior, there should have been protocols in place.”
The hotel is under new ownership following the collapse of Specialist Leisure Group in 2020.
Keir said the family never received an apology for the incident from the former operators and were not even refunded.
He said the travel firm that the hotel was booked through continue to send his mother promotional material for holidays.
‘Elderly and vulnerable’
He said: “That’s regardless of the fact we have written to them explaining the situation and asking them not to do so.
“Every time she gets one through the door, it triggers her.”
He said a Crown Office press release announcing the fatal accident inquiry, which was issued without the family’s knowledge, caused further deep distress after his “elderly and vulnerable” mother was subsequently “door-stepped” by a reporter.
A Crown Office spokesman told BBC Scotland News: “We have apologised to the next of kin for any distress that may have been caused by not advising them in advance of publication.”
A preliminary hearing for the inquiry, which is expected to begin next year, will take place at Alloa Sheriff Court on Friday.
Keir said the family welcomed the fatal accident inquiry taking place.
He said they were looking forward to the inquiry probing matters relating to the hotel’s hot water system, the door arrangement, the hotel’s health and safety arrangements, and the response to the emergency on the day.
‘Tragedy and horror’
He said: “I hope the sheriff is able to provide actual findings that will protect people and the public interest going forward.
“But ultimately I still really struggle with the idea that no individual or organisation has been held accountable.
“We do not want another family to go through this. With the FAI looming and the civil case proceeding, it’s very hard for the wounds to close and the family to move on.”
The family’s lawyer Glen Millar of Thompsons Solicitors said it was impossible to overstate the “tragedy and horror” of Mr Hunter’s death.
He said: “To make matters worse, the family have been offered no apology and there has been no acceptance of any blame.
“The court will be asked to consider evidence of multiple complaints by guests about the water system in the hotel prior to this dreadful accident.”
