HUNDREDS of mourners yesterday placed roses on a hearse carrying the body a three-year-old boy who was killed in a car crash.
Residents and business owners lined the street to pay their respects as the funeral procession drove by.
Xander Irvine was walking along Morningside Road in Edinburgh with his mother Victoria, 37, when he was hit by a car on Tuesday, June 30.
The red Kia mounted the pavement and crashed into a shop front at around 2.30pm. Xander was taken to hospital but died from his injuries.
His mother was also injured but has since been released from hospital.
Local florist Quate & Co handed out 400 roses to those who had gathered in the same street, so the flowers could be placed on the hearse as it passed en route to a private service at Morningside Cemetery.
Tributes were paid to Xander in the Scottish Parliament yesterday afternoon, with Greens co-leader Alison Johnstone telling MSPs he will “never be forgotten”.
Her voice trembling with emotion, Johnstone said: “I’m sure that this Parliament will wish to send its sincerest sympathies to the family and friends of three-year-old Xander
Irvine, whose funeral took place in Edinburgh this morning.
“The huge number of people who turned out on Morningside roads to pay their respects is testament to the love the community has for Xander and his family. He will never be
forgotten.”
In response, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “None of us, I don’t think, in this chamber can come close to understanding the heartbreak and devastation that his parents are suffering right now.”
In a statement previously released by the family, they said: “Xander Paul Thomas Irvine, three years old, was out for a walk in Morningside with his mother on Tuesday afternoon when a tragic
accident occurred.
“Xander was a very happy, bubbly, intelligent little boy who was very dearly loved by his parents Victoria and Paul.
“Xander was a real chatterbox who just loved books, playing with all sorts of vehicles and his Lego.
“He really enjoyed life and he enriched the lives of everyone he met.
“Victoria and Paul are devastated and feel as if their hearts have been ripped out.
“Xander will be so very sorely missed by them both and all his family and friends in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
“What will we do without you, Xander?”
Police said the 91-year-old woman driving the car was not injured.
A fundraiser was launched to help the family, and more than £25,000 had been donated by yesterday.
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