A dismayed family say they cannot understand why a rock commemorating their loved one has been removed from the Gower cliffs where he died.
Andrea Mills said the rock was a source of comfort after her 18-year-old son Sean Hamer died in a tragic accident at Southgate.
Although his death was seven years ago the family had only put the rock, inscribed with Sean’s name and date of birth, above the cliffs in February 2016.
She said they had chosen the rock because it was simple and fitted in with the stunning environment.
“It’s just a little, normal rock,” said Mrs Mills, of Neath .
“It was in the corner of a field, and hard to find. It has been dug up and it’s completely gone. How could anyone do it?
“They have got memorial benches there with people’s names on.”
Mrs Mills said police had received complaints in the aftermath of Sean’s death when family and friends left flowers and gifts at Eastcliff, Southgate, above where his body was found.
“Police took them away, and asked us if we wanted to come and pick them up,” she said.
Mrs Mills said the rock was covered in mud when the family visited in February this year on the anniversary of Sean’s death.
“The mud was patted down on it,” she said. “We were all a bit upset about that.”
The 52-year-old, of Gnoll Park Road, said it was missing entirely when her brother went there a fortnight ago.
An inquest in 2011 heard that former Dwr-y-Felin pupil Sean had suffered multiple injuries when his body was discovered on the shoreline on February 26, 2010. Exactly how he came to be at the spot known as Beacon’s Hole remains uncertain, because there were no witnesses to his final movements.
On the day of his disappearance Sean, who worked at Gnoll Park Country Estate, had been due to attend college in Margam.
A verdict of accidental death was recorded.
Mrs Mills said she took some solace in her son’s body being located. “It could have been that he had drifted out to sea,” she said.
Sean’s ashes were scattered at Gnoll Park, where there is a bench and tree commemorating him.
Seven years on and she said time was a healer, up to a point.
“The pain and loss travels everywhere with you,” she said. "Our little family unit is not the same — there is one missing.
“Sean had just passed his driving test, we’d bought him a car, and he had a job. We have no answers as to what happened.
“We have all got on with our lives, but he is still part of us. We miss him every day.”
The National Trust, which owns most of the Gower coastline, said it was not aware of the commemorative rock.
Trust manager Paul Boland said: “We fully appreciate that National Trust properties are special to many people, especially those of lost loved ones who had connections to our places.
“Our role is to keep these places special for everyone and we regularly work with families to find ways of commemorating loved ones that don’t involve physical memorials.”
