'The community has stood strong': How Liverpool is trying to heal from trauma at trophy parade

Sky News

4 days ago

The memorabilia that marks a milestone title - No 20 - is still being snapped up two days on from the Premier League trophy parade.
Water Street, where a vehicle struck crowds gathered to celebrate their team's success, was open again today - cleared the detritus of the horror, and the bottles of beer were abandoned in an instant.
But Liverpool fans are asking whether a day filled with so much joy can be reclaimed for the euphoria, after scenes of such devastation.
"The incident itself, it's obviously ended up very much marring the memory of what should have been a great day," said Neil Atkinson, host of The Anfield Wrap podcast.
"There are a lot of different lived realities at once. Those right by the event obviously have theirs.
"But as that sort of spreads out, everyone's in a bit of a different place.
"So I think in the fullness of time - if everyone involved makes a full recovery, insofar as that's possible because there are other types of scar and not just physical - then I think that people can remember it as a positive occasion."
Liverpool has dealt with trauma before at Hillsborough and beyond, when institutions have endangered and failed fans.
This feels harder to comprehend - the shock - why the vehicle was driven through a crowd enjoying the most uplifting of days.
Shortly before, the Strand nearby had been cloaked in a haze of red smoke that had followed the buses through the 10-mile parade, You'll Never Walk Alone booming out.
The song is more than an anthem; it is woven into the club's identity, embodying the bond between fans and the club.
Here, it was the soundtrack of celebration. In moments of tragedy, it has been the hymn of resilience amid healing.
"The Liverpool community has stood firm," Mr Atkinson said.
"Everyone just wants to help and support, and I think the human instinct, first and foremost, when bad things, scary things happen, is that there are people who want to reach out, and I think that is a good, it's a special thing.
And the Reds are feeling the outpouring of solidarity, with rivals rallying behind them from far and wide.
"I love Liverpool and I think that Liverpool has something about it that's genuinely exceptional," Atkinson said.
"But I also love that … I was getting messages from people who aren't even connected to the game, who see this, who want to check that I was all right.