Over £2,000 has been raised to help the family of a tragic Angus marine following a devastating blaze.
Ralph Hebden’s widow Sarah and three-year-old daughter Evie lost everything when flames ripped through their West Derby home.
Treasured mementos of Mr Hebden were lost forever after the home burned down when a disposable barbecue was blown over.
A forces charity for the children of dead service personnel made a nationwide appeal a week ago to help Mrs Hebden and Evie get back on their feet.
The charity donated £1,000 to the appeal and already another £1,000 has now been raised by the public for ‘Evie’s Appeal’.
Mr Hebden fell to his death from a foggy clifftop off the Arbroath coast after going missing from RM Condor on March 11 2013.
Toxteth-born Mr Hebden, 32, who was an Afghanistan veteran, was found three weeks later.
His wife gave birth to their daughter in the period following his disappearance.
The charity’s founder Nikki Scott, who lost her husband Corporal Lee Scott, when his vehicle hit an IED in Afghanistan, said:
“This was a devastating thing to happen to Sarah and Evie and my heart goes out to them both and we want to help in any way possible.”
The Hebdens returned to England following a harrowing investigation that recorded Mr Hebden’s death as a “tragic accident”.
Mrs Hebden said she watched her “whole world go up in flames” and they have not been able to get back in because of the water damage.
“We had nothing and needed to borrow everything including nighties,” she said.
Mr Hebden went missing on March 11 2013 when he left his home in the town saying he was going for a run.
The search for Mr Hebden started on the same day as his disappearance when the town’s coastline was combed by coastguards and police late into the evening.
In the days and weeks which followed, several more searches of Arbroath were made, including one with the involvement of fellow marines from 45 Commando.
A three-week police search ended in the discovery of his body in the water on April 1.
Mr Hebden was laid to rest at the Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas in Liverpool with full military honours.
To donate to ‘Evie’s Appeal’ visit the Scotty’s website www.scottyslittlesoldiers.co.uk or text EVIE16 £3 to 70070.
