'Nothing can turn back the clock': Tahnie Martin's mother condemns firm over Storm Doris death
The mother of Storm Doris victim Tahnie Martin has launched a blistering attack on the company whose incompetence cost the life of her beloved daughter.
Rosie Martin's outburst came after Cushman and Wakefield, the managing agent for Wolverhampton city centre's Mander Centre, was fined £1.33 million after admitting failing to protect the general public.
Ms Martin, who was aged 29 and soon to be married, died after being hit by a 4ft 2ins by 5ft piece of wood as she walked past Starbucks in Dudley Street during Storm Doris on February 23 2017.
Despite being in charge of the maintenance of the Black Rock building for five years before tragedy struck, Cushman and Wakefield had no idea there was a water tower and another structure on the plant room roof above the six-storey block from which the piece of wood that killed Ms Martin was blown after being allowed to rot.
WATCH: Tahnie Martin's mother speaks outside court
Mrs Martin declared outside Wolverhampton Crown Court after the case: "Cushman and Wakefield will never fully realise what their failings have taken from Tahnie, her family, her loved ones and friends.
"It took their chief executive more than two years after she died to send us a letter of apology. Our message to him is do not offer us your sincere condolences. We don't accept your apology.
"There is nothing that you can say to us, your words are meaningless. Nothing can turn back the clock and give us our precious Tahnie back.
"We will be brutally blunt. We wanted people to be held accountable and go to prison. Persons should have been held accountable for what happened. Not the company, but individuals, held to account. In the end it was just about money."
She added: "Tahnie was taken from us on a normal shopping street. It should never have happened. It was no random accident. It was preventable and it happened because a roof high above Wolverhampton's busiest shopping street was left to rust and rot."
Mrs Justice Carr said while outlining a catalogue of failings by the firm: "The structure was not inspected or maintained in any way whilst under the company's charge. It was omitted from maintenance plans."
The judge added: "Ms Martin had a first class degree, a job she loved at the University of Wolverhampton and had just got engaged, with everything to live for and look forward to."
Ms Martin was engaged to be married to fiance Shaun Lee, who was in court for sentencing, and the couple had just moved into their first home together.
Mrs Martin said: "It was not just our clever, talented Tahnie that lost her life that terrible day.
"We now have no life, no future - Tahnie was our future, our world.
"We should have been planning a wedding. Instead we had to plan a funeral."
Mrs Martin spoke while flanked by her husband and her daughter's best friend who held images of the wooden panel and Miss Martin.
WATCH: Firm's statement after £1.3m fine
Cushman and Wakefield Chief Executive Colin Wilson, speaking after the hearing, said: "We are very sorry for what happened. Our focus since that day has been to learn lessons to stop anything like it happening again.
"We have a new inspection regime and are looking to share lessons learnt with the wider industry."
Wolverhampton City Council's senior solicitor Richard Phillips said: "The sentence reflects the shocking state of repair on the roof of the Mander Centre that could and should have been repaired."
