Family pay tribute to tragic father killed in Austria

RELATIVES of a dad-of-five killed when he was struck by a train in Austria have been left 'heartbroken' by the tragedy.

Fraser and Dani with their children

Fraser McGill was on his way home from work last Wednesday afternoon when he was hit by a high-speed train at a suburban railway station in Vienna.

The 48-year-old, who previously lived in the Lochend and Dalry areas of the city, moved to the Austrian capital 18 years ago to pursue scaffolding work. There, he met his wife, Dani, and had four of his children.

Today his family in Edinburgh said they had been left devastated – and accused authorities of leaving them in the dark.

Mum Helen McGill, who lives in Lochend, paid tribute to her “wonderful” son.

She was on holiday in South Africa when she received the devastating news and booked an emergency flight home.

She said: “He was a larger-than-life character who touched the lives of many always making everyone laugh.

“He was the life and soul of the party.

“Fraser was so funny, quick witted and full of fun, everybody just loved him.

“He was a wonderful son, father, brother, uncle, nephew and cousin and will be missed so much by everyone.

“He was a great friend to all who knew him.”

She added: “We are now just looking for more information as to what actually happened.”

It is understood Mr McGill had sent text messages to both his mum and uncle less than an hour before the freak accident took place around 3pm at Grillgasse railway station in the Simmering neighbourhood of Vienna.

Police spokesman Thomas Keiblinger said Mr McGill had been waiting for a train when he moved backwards and accidentally stepped too close to the tracks as the intercity train passed through the station.

The spokesman said he was thrown violently to the ground by the force of the impact and is understood to have died at the scene.

His mum, Helen, said the family had been planning to travel to Vienna in June for a large reunion.

She added: “So many people have been getting in touch to ask questions but we don’t have a clue what is going on.

“All we know is what Dani has been telling us. We don’t know if a post-mortem will be carried out or what the next steps are.

“It was previously reported the accident had happened in the early hours of Wednesday morning, but it took place around 3pm in the afternoon.”

A spokesman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: “We are in contact with the local authorities following the death of a British man in Vienna, Austria. We are ready to provide support at this difficult time.”

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