[27], Explaining his decision, Sir Joseph Cantley stated: "As I have already stated, the primary duty was on the Club and the functions of the County Council were supervisory and its liability is for negligent breach of a common law duty arising out of the way in which they dealt with or ignored their statutory powers. "I was operated on every other day because I had so many burns and so many areas to work on. But all the people being treated, we formed a family, a bond.". Parents and children were laughing and joking with the police as the preliminaries to the game began. "The fire still has a big impact on people," Parker says. [51] Another book; 56: The Story of the Bradford Fire (2015) was written by Martin Fletcher to discuss how the disaster was caused, and follows his loss of his father, brother, uncle and grandfather. [32] Speaking at the close of the case, the Judge said "They (the club) were at fault, no one in authority seemed to have appreciated the fire hazard. At 3.40pm, television commentator John Helm remarked upon a small fire in the main stand; in less than four minutes, with the windy conditions, the fire had engulfed the whole stand, trapping some people in their seats. A new book, written by Valley Parade survivor Martin Fletcher, claims then-Bradford City chairman Stafford Heginbotham had previously netted millions of pounds from insurance payouts after at least eight previous fires at businesses he was associated with. "I know it's a clich to say that, but it's true.". However as the game against Lincoln progressed, a fire began just before half-time in the stand that ran alongside the pitch. The stand had already been condemned, and the demolition teams were due to start work two days later. [3] It included a main stand which seated 5,300fans, and had room for a further 7,000 standing spectators in the paddock in front. "When I got to one of the final walls, there was an eight-foot drop at the other side, concrete at the bottom. Following the hearing in 1986, a test case was brought against the club by David Britton, a police sergeant serving on the day, and by Susan Fletcher, who lost her husband John, 11-year-old son Andrew, John's brother Peter and his father Edmond in the fire. It was appalling that public money was given to the club while it was still owned by the same shareholders under whose direction the fire had happened. Luckily, his father arrived home shortly after he did, but 30 years on, he still remembers the young woman who served him a Mars Bar and his father a coffee, who never made it out of the stadium. I hope you enjoy some of the fascinating stories we have here.#History #Disasters Somebody looked round and grabbed me by the hood of my coat to pull me over. [34], During the case, Sir Joseph Cantley stated that: "It is only right that I should say that I think it would be unfair to conclude that Heginbotham, Tordoff, the Board of Directors, or any of them, were intentionally and callously indifferent to the safety of spectators using the stand. It was clear from what the Chief Fire Officer for West Yorkshire, Mr Graham Karran, said yesterday that the ground was far from safe. The intensity of the blaze which spread 'quicker than people could walk' destroyed the main stand area, leaving a skeleton of burned seats, lamps and fences. "I got pushed down to the front and I remember looking around and suddenly this smouldering, small fire had taken over virtually half a block and was starting to hit the roof. I asked the director to get the camera to go a little closer. At the final home match against Barnsley at the end of April, Bradford City fans collected more than 8,000 in a bucket collection. Some had been crushed as they tried to crawl under turnstiles to escape. It wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". By the time the fire brigade arrived they were faced with huge flames and dense smoke. Valley Parade re-opened on 14 December 1986, when Bradford City beat an England XI 21 in a friendly. Otherwise, I would not have been able to get out. Most recognizably, tens of thousands of Burners gather annually to build Black Rock City, a participative temporary metropolis . [45] PCs Peter Donald Barrett and David Charles Midgley, along with spectators Michael William Bland and Timothy Peter Leigh received the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct. Others ran forward to try to clamber over a fence and a small wall on to the pitch. The name of the event comes from its culminating ceremony: the symbolic burning of a large wooden effigy, referred to as the Man, that occurs on the penultimate night of Burning Man, which is the Saturday evening before Labor Day. Mr Tony Delahunte, who was presenting a programme from the ground for Pennine Radio, said 'The fire seemed to me to start with a smoke bomb. > Contacts> Join us> Circulars> Training courses> Sign up to Rollcall. The inquiry had found that the club had been warned that the accumulation of rubbish beneath the stands was a fire risk. It remains to be seen whether a new investigation will take place. [38], The tragedy received immense media attention and drew support from around the world, with those offering their sympathy including Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II. The fire destroyed the main stand completely and left only burned seats, lamps and metal fences remaining. Police worked until 4am the next morning, under lighting, to remove all the bodies. Funnily enough I was thinking 'I'm going to miss the second half at this rate'. It was a gruesome sight to see bodies still sitting upright in their seats, covered in tarpaulin. It was later established that the blaze was caused by a fan who went to put his cigarette out but dropped it between the floorboards onto a pile of rubbish that had been building up below. As a result, Bradford-born captain Peter Jackson was presented with the league trophy before the final game of the season with mid-table Lincoln City at Valley Parade on 11 May 1985. Representatives from the fire brigade were due to go to the club tomorrow to inspect it and see whether regulations were being observed. And the black and twisted skeleton of the burnt stand stood out in the night. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. [4] Football ground writer Simon Inglis had described the view from the stand as "like watching football from the cockpit of a Sopwith Camel" because of its antiquated supports and struts. I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. I had no idea. The two sides met for the first time after the fire in April 1989, when they arranged a benefit match in aid of the Hillsborough disaster, at Valley Parade. The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. Sign up and stay up to date with our daily newsletter. Recommended The untold stories of the 1985 fire Mr Stefan Krolak, a survivor from Bradford , said he saw the smoke start a few seats away from him 'The smoke seemed suddenly to set on fire. Supporters either ran upwards to the back of the stand or downwards to the pitch to escape. Interviews conducted by BBC Radio Leeds' Tim Daley. When Town reached the Midland Road side of the pitch, he was faced with horrific scenes of the injured being treated and comforted by ambulance crews, fans and players. His face was burned and his car, which he had parked outside the ground, was destroyed. "I was burnt from top to bottom, on and off. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. More than 3,500 people were crammed into the main stand area and this prevented people from moving away from the blaze quickly. There is no evidence in the book, he is just pointing out there are some coincidences. The heat inside the stand literally ignited people where they stood. He is quoted as saying: "I don't believe the statement of retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer at all. No one gave it the attention it ought to have received.. .. 1909 - Flores Theater fire, Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, on February 15, killed 250. An ancient wooden spectator stand and a dropped cigarette - the ingredients for one of Britain's deadliest soccer tragedies. The main stand at Valley Parade burned down after what was thought to be a dropped cigarette led to flames which engulfed the entire wooden structure. ', Bradford City Fire Website messages of condolence from around the world, "Chuckle Brothers' single for Bradford City fire anniversary", "Bradford City stadium fire: The untold stories of the 1985 fire", "Emotive play of Bradford City fire disaster raises cash for burns unit", "Book Review: Four Minutes to Hell: The Story of the Bradford City Fire by Paul Firth football book reviews", "Football Focus 1st May 2010 Bradford City Part 1", Bradford City A year of healing Documentary, "Bradford fire: expert demands new investigation into blaze", "Bradford City stadium fire 1985 IPCC investigation decision", "BRADFORD CITY FIRE: Accidental cause of tragedy 'not in any doubt', says detective", "Bradford City fire 'started by cigarette', "Bradford City fire: Briton attacks 'inaccurate' BBC documentary claiming his uncle started blaze", "Bradford fire: Sir Oliver Popplewell defends 1985 inquiry interview in full", Living with Jacko From Touchline to Lifeline, Fifty-Six: The Story of the Bradford Fire, The full Interim Report by Lord Popplewell into the Bradford City Fire, British Medical Journal article on the treatment of burns casualties after the Bradford City Fire, Peter Jackson's account of the Bradford City Fire, Nationally broadcast Yorkshire Television programme covering the fire, broadcast the following day, ITN bulletin covering the fire, also from the following day, ITN bulletin covering the aftermath, from three days later, Chelsea F.C. Eighty names were unaccounted for and there were no positive indications about the cause of the fire. Hillsborough looms the largest in our collective consciousness, but there were also the many deaths that occurred at Heysel Stadium in 1985, as well as the Bradford City stadium fire that same year. Treatment of casualties and Burns Research Unit, Dramatisations, documentaries and published works, West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of accidents and disasters by death toll, List of United Kingdom disasters by death toll, "Hideous images linger after carnage of 'celebration' day", "Caught in Time: Bradford City win the Third Division, 1985", "EXCLUSIVE: Bradford's Valley Parade fire must be remembered like Hillsborough", "History of The Bradford Sling The Bradford Sling", "Bradford City football stadium blaze surgeon honoured", "Research centre to be living memorial to Bradford City FC fire disaster", "The Papers of the Popplewell Inquiry into Crowd Safety at Sports Grounds", "Popplewell Inquiry Bradford City Fire", "Bradford remembered: The unheeded warnings that led to tragedy", Joseph Canley summing up statement from test case court transcripts, Newspaper report from Sport and the Law April 21st 1989, "The Glasgow Herald Google News Archive Search", Los Angeles Times report on Bradford City test case findings, Court transcript from the test case brought by Susan Fletcher and Others against Bradford City and Others, "Bradford fire survivor attacks judge over Hillsborough comments", "The Story of the Bradford Fire: 'could any man really be as unlucky as Stafford Heginbotham? Now a new film claims an Australian was responsible for the worst . The horrific scenes of people burning alive seemed to live on in an eerie silence as daylight broke over the remains of Bradford City Football Club's ground yesterday. The Bradford Disaster Appeal fund, set up within 48hours of the disaster, eventually raised over 3.5million (11.3million today). "It is the little things that show how much people are still involved the fire still has a big impact on people. "I was in the main stand when the fire happened," he says. "It made me realise life is too short." In those days there was a lot of hooliganism and violence, so my initial thought was: 'I hope it has not kicked off - that's the last thing we need'. [57] Following the 30th anniversary of the fire, a number of news organisations named this man as Eric Bennett who was visiting his nephew in Bradford from Australia and attended the game on the day. Some people seem to have run back up the slope, thinking that they could get back through the turnstiles, and were burned alive. Pendleton: "I walked past a public telephone outside the ground and there were queues of people waiting to ring home to say: 'I'm OK'. After Hillsborough, the Bradford City FC stadium fire was the second worst sporting tragedy in England, leaving 56 dead and at least 265 injured. "[11] Police Superintendent Barry Osborne, divisional commander for the area, said many of his officers cried when they saw how badly people had been burned. [8][10] Three men smashed down one door and at least one exit was opened by people outside, which again helped prevent further deaths. The Bradford City stadium fire occurred during a Football League Third Division match on Saturday, 11 May 1985 at the Valley Parade stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, killing 56 spectators and injuring at least 265. Edited by BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko. Helm later described the start of the fire in an interview to the Express newspaper: .mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}, [A] man over from Australia visiting his son got two tickets to the game. I dread to imagine how many more could have died if the wind had been blowing in the direction of the pitch, instead of away from it. Television cameras spotted the outbreak of fire in Valley Parade's main stand at 15:40 BST. ", "There was a throw-in in front of the stand where the fire started - something caught my eye. Witnesses of the fire have come to terms with the tragedy in different ways. Bradford council introduced its emergency plans procedure yesterday to give aid to many families affected by the disaster. Mr Antony Burrows said: 'One man was stood near me with his hair on fire. "As I ran away I remember turning around and looking and just seeing this wall of grey smoke pouring out and pushing thousands of people in front of it. [10][16] Geoffrey Mitchell said: "There was panic as fans stampeded to an exit which was padlocked. Fifty-six people died. The stand had no perimeter fencing to keep fans from accessing the pitch, thus averting an instance of crush asphyxia as in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. Hundreds more telephoned the police to try to trace relatives. It was sort of the good thing to come out of the nightmare," says Simon Parker, a football reporter for the Telegraph and Argus. The blaze, at the Happy Land Social Club in the Bronx, killed 87 people, the . "One of my most haunting images was being on the bus home after dark and going past Valley Parade. "[28], West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council was found to have failed in its duty under the Fire Precautions Act 1971. ", Hendrie: "We stayed in the pub for hours. There was some kind of disturbance near the edge of a block of seats in the G section of the main stand. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. He went on to state: "In 1985 fire investigation in Britain was in its infancy and some would say at that time most fire investigators were not much more than dust-kickers. Fletcher said that "The club at the time took no actual responsibility for its actions and nobody has ever really been held accountable for the level of negligence which took place. Those who rescued people were themselves burned in the process. There were many cases of heroism, with more than 50 people later receiving police awards or commendations for bravery. But the sheer density of numbers coupled with the thick, choking smoke made people collapse. People were clambering over the wall on to the ground with their clothes and hair on fire. [10] One eyewitness, Geoffrey Mitchell, told the BBC: "It spread like a flash. However, when Bradford City won promotion to the highest level of English football, Division One, in 1908, club officials sanctioned an upgrade programme. Within five minutes the whole stand was engulfed in flames. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. People were falling on to each other and screaming. Burning timbers and molten materials fell from the roof onto the crowd and seating below, and dense black smoke enveloped a passageway behind the stand, where many spectators were trying to escape. They were immediately promoted back to the Football League in 1988, and survived for 23 years before being relegated again in 2011. The team's coach, Mr Terry Yorath, ran on to the pitch to try to help people away from the stand. Most of those who escaped onto the pitch were saved.[10]. Pendleton: "One of my most haunting images was being on the bus home after dark and going past Valley Parade. People who had escaped the fire then tried to assist their fellow supporters. She was an. Among the main outcomes of the inquiry were the banning of new wooden grandstands at all UK sports grounds, the immediate closure of other wooden stands deemed unsafe and the banning of smoking in other wooden stands. Someone came in and shouted: 'Get out, get out there's a fire'. ", ITV football commentator John Helm, who provided live commentary of the unfolding disaster across the nation: "We wouldn't normally have covered that game - no question about it. His son Christopher normally watches from the stand but on Saturday he joined other fans elsewhere. The game was irrelevant.". Guided by the values expressed by the 10 Principles, Burning Man is a global ecosystem of artists, makers, and community organizers who co-create art, events, and local initiatives around the world. As we move ahead on the 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, sustainability projects are taking center stage. There were no fire extinguishers. I asked the director to get the camera to go a little closer. The fire started five minutes before half-time during the match on 11 May between Bradford and Lincoln City. Pendleton: "Many people still don't want to talk about the disaster. Led by former England international Trevor Cherry, the Bantams won only their third divisional title and earned a return to the second tier of English football for the first time since 1937. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. The 51 other bodies of children, women and men were so badly burned that identification will take many days. The firemen who arrived there were met by a wall of flame and dense black smoke. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. However, the turnstiles were locked and none of the stadium staff were present to unlock them, leaving no escape through the normal entrances and exits. Since then, it has been further re-developed and, today, Valley Parade is a modern 25,136 all-seater stadium, which is virtually unrecognisable from how it was at the time of the disaster, save for the original clubhouse that still stands beside the main stand, and the flank support wall that runs down the Hollywell Ash Lane at the "Bradford End". Sir Oliver Popplewell, the High Court judge who led the Valley Parade inquiry in 1985: "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. I ran to the stand and tried to help people escape. However, there is a lot in this book that troubles me about the science, or lack of it, used in the testing of the investigators' hypothesis as to the source of the ignition. Crowds on the pitch at Bradford City's Valley Parade stadium after the stand caught fire, Bradford City fans pay tribute to the 56 fans who died the Bradford City stadium fire in 1985, The blaze causing the deaths of 56 supporters in one of the worst incidents in British football, Bradford artist Paul Town was inspired to paint after surviving the Valley Parade fire, Stay up to date with our daily newsletter, New book claims fatal 1985 Bradford City Valley Parade fire might have been started deliberately, Bradford City chairman 'linked to eight fires' before Valley Parade stadium disaster, Bradford City 0-0 Reading: Bantams hold Royals in quarter-final stalemate, David Alaba receives massive abuse for voting for Lionel Messi in The Best awards, Glazers' demands set to delay Manchester United takeover: reports, Man Utd beat West Ham to reach FA Cup quarters as Spurs crash out, Bahrain GP: F1 team rankings ahead of 2023 season-opener, Real Madrid vs Barcelona: Xavi admits Los Blancos still favourites to advance. Bradford City players line up to observe a minutes silence for the 25th anniversary of the 1985 Bradford stadium fire prior to the Coca Cola League.
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