Massacre in Cumbria

On June 2, 2010 Derrick Bird, a 52 year-old Cumbrian cab driver, went on a killing spree, shooting dead 12 people and injuring 11 more. His motivation is still unclear; an argument with colleagues, a family feud, and a previous assault are all said to have possibly tipped the divorced grandfather and father over the edge.

Beginning in the early hours of Wednesday morning with the murder of his twin brother David and the family solicitor, Kevin Commons, Derrick then drove to Whitehaven, opening fire at 10:35am and killing two of his colleagues. He then went on a rampage through the villages of Egremont, Gosforth, and Seascale, shooting indiscriminately at passers by.

He ended his frenzied attacks in Boot, abandoning his car and setting off alone and on foot into the woodlands where he took his own life at 1:25pm. As the ambulance service took over 50 emergency calls in three and a half hours, police told people to lock their doors and stay inside. Shops, pubs, banks, and supermarkets pulled strangers off the street to give them shelter.

A quiet lad who had no luck with lasses no one will really know what drove Derrick Bird to kill, but the consequences of his actions will remain for years to come as families, friends, and an entire nation come to turns with what he did on an ordinary June morning.