Grieving mum and dad's heartbreak as yobs try to set fire to their treasured baby's grave

A heartbroken mother has told of her devastation after finding out yobs had tried to set fire to her baby's grave.

Hannah Burrett's daughter, Myla Pink, was stillborn in 2022 and is buried in the Peter Rabbit area of Redcar Cemetery which is reserved for babies and children. The mum-of-five said when her husband, Michael Pink, went to visit their daughter's grave on Saturday, November 23, he made the shocking discovery.

Hannah, who lives in Thornaby with her family, said there is a small wooden fence around Myla's grave and the culprits had pushed polystyrene from some artificial flowers into the corner of it and tried to set it on fire. She said: "Thankfully, probably because the wood was damp, it didn't set alight, so there was no real damage.

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"They also smashed some items which were on the grave of a little boy next to Myla.

"I have no words to describe how I am feeling about it. They are just despicable, you wouldn't do something like this to any grave, never mind a baby's. I think it must have been kids, because surely no adult would do something like this."

Hannah, 32, said she, and lots of other families, are now calling on the council to install security cameras at the cemetery. She said: "It is open 24/7 and there is no security there. They don't lock the gates, but even if they did it is just a small wall for anyone to climb over."

Hannah shared what had happened on social media and was inundated with messages of support and people telling of their 'disgust' that something like this could happen. A lot of worried parents said they would be going along to the Redcar Lane cemetery to check on their own child's resting place.

A Peter Rabbit themed garden was created at the initiative of the Friends of Redcar Cemetery Group, in partnership with the council. It is the second special area within Redcar Cemetery - the first being the Peter Pan path also dedicated to the sad loss of children and younger people.

A spokesman for Redcar and Cleveland Council said: "This area of Redcar Cemetery is extremely important to grieving families who have lost children and we condemn in the strongest possible terms anyone any causes any damage to any grave.

"We work closely with police who are investigating and urge anyone who knows anything about this alleged crime to contact them as soon as possible. Our community officers have increased patrols in the area and will continue to do so. Our sympathy is with the families."

A spokesperson for Cleveland Police said: "On Saturday, November 23, sadly Cleveland Police received a report of damage to and theft of items from a child's grave in a Redcar cemetery. Naturally, this has caused great distress to the family involved and our thoughts are with them. Officers have attended the location and spoken with the reporting person and enquiries are underway.

"We would urge anyone with information as to who may be responsible to contact Cleveland Police on the 101 number quoting ref 223608. Alternatively, information can be passed anonymously to www.crimestoppers-uk.org or by phoning them on 0800 555 111."

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