OVER 100 people gathered to remember loved ones lost to addiction at a poignant candlelit vigil held in Greenock's Clyde Square.

The emotional gathering was organised by Teen Challenge Strathclyde and the Haven Kilmacolm.

Willie Carter, an outreach worker with Teen Challenge who turned his own life around after going through the Haven programme, said it was very well attended despite the bad weather.

Willie said: "There were around 150 people, even though the weather was horrendous.

"People from Teen Challenge shared their real life stories and their journey to recovery.

"At the end of the vigil there was a five-minute open mic for families who had lost loved ones.

"They shared their names and mothers spoke of the loved ones they had lost.

"It was very emotional."

Willie says the vigil was an important way to help remember the 33 people who lost their lives in Inverclyde last year to drug addiction.

The area has one of the highest drug death rates in the country.

It was also an opportunity to showcase the work Teen Challenge does and highlight the fact that support is there to help people struggling with addiction.

Willie said: "We were really pleased with the turnout - it shows the strength of feeling in Inverclyde.

"It shows that people were cared about and loved - they were not just a statistic."

Willie says the sense of loss remains very raw for some of the families who gathered together.

He said: "Some people had lost loved ones only three months ago, some 10 years ago - but it was still very painful."

*For more information about Teen Challenge and its servives call Willie on 07392444286.