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. Somebody looked round and grabbed me by the hood of my coat to pull me over. 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. Mike Harrison, the editor of the Bradford City Football Club fanzine The City Gent, was there on the day. "[27], After controversial comments made by Popplewell about the Hillsborough Disaster, Fletcher raised further concerns about the events following the fire saying that "I have many unanswered questions still about the fire in which four of my family died, as does my mother. The plastic surgeon who treated the injuries of over 200, Professor David Sharpe, went on to set up a world-renowned burns research facility at the University of Bradford. I had no idea. It was unprecedented.". The next day work began on clearing the burnt out shell of the stand, and Justice Popplewell released his findings into the disaster. The club's success had swollen the crowd to 10,000 and arguments will rage about fire precautions at the ground. "We couldn't help because there were so many people streaming towards us, to our side of the pitch, to get away from the heat. A minute later he saw a small plume of smoke so he poured his coffee on it and so did his son. 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 fact is that no one person was concerned with the safety of the premises. 24 Bradford City A.F.C. "[16] As spectators began to cascade over the wall separating the stand from the pitch, the linesman on that side of the pitch informed referee Norman Glover, who stopped the game with three minutes remaining before half-time. It was to be our day,' he said. Martin Fletcher, whose brother, father, grandfather and uncle all died in the fire: "I'm taking the opportunity to lay out the facts that were not laid out in 1985 at the time of the inquiry or the inquests. A capacity 6,000 crowd attended a multi-denominational memorial service, held on the pitch in the sunny shadow of the burnt out stand at Valley Parade in July 1985. One elderly man started to walk across the pitch with his clothes and face ablaze. Last updated on 10 May 201510 May 2015.From the section Football, "People didn't die because of fires at football grounds. There is no malicious vendetta, there is no over-exaggeration, there are no trumped-up facts. "As well as those who lost their lives or were injured, there are the relatives and friends, the others who were at the game, and those who would normally have gone to the match but decided not to that day. Some days I had two operations in a day. Within 48 hours of the disaster, the Bradford Disaster Appeal Fund had been set up and would eventually raise over 3.5m ($5.4m). By the time the fire brigade arrived they were faced with huge flames and dense smoke. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. Most of the exits at the back were locked or shut and there were no stewards present to open them, but seven were forced open or found open. It spelt out 'thank you fans'. Other parents whose children had not arrived home on Saturday called at the police station or sat in cars outside, waiting for news. We accepted it was an accident, nobody wanted to blame the club because it was the club we wanted to support. 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". The entrances to the stand were all at the rear and were higher than the rest of the ground. 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'. > Contacts> Join us> Circulars> Training courses> Sign up to Rollcall. 'The fire just spread along the length of the stand in seconds. 'I think that is unlikely,' he said. They were donated by Bradford's twin city of Hamm, Germany, and are situated in front of Bradford City Hall in both locations. Police removed the last body from the ground at 4 am yesterday, working under arc lights. Many who had walked out of the fire stood on the pitch looking back in horror as the flames destroyed the stand. We went over to the policeman stood at the corner flag and asked if it was being sorted out, and he said it was under control," Harrison says. [5] However, he also warned the club of a build-up of litter beneath the stand because of a gap between the seats. The blame was through neglect, they didn't have the money to maintain the stand. There were queues of people outside houses, which obviously wouldn't happen nowadays. 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. Town began to paint two years ago, first of the old Bradford Park Avenue ground, before moving onto other stadiums. Fletcher, who was 12 at the time of the fire, does not make any direct allegations but he does believe Heginbotham's history with fires resulting in payouts of around 27m in today's terms warrants further investigation. ', Sports reporters covering the game also spoke of the disaster. When the game began there was no way out for them, except by going on to the pitch. [10] Of those who died, 11 were under-18 and 23 were aged 65 or over,[20] and the oldest victim was the club's former chairman, Sam Firth, aged 86. Smoke was seen coming from the third row in the section but people are apparently used to seeing smoke flares on the Bradford ground. "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. [13], The match kicked off at 3:04pm and after forty minutes of the first half, the score remained 00,[14] in what was described as a drab affair with neither team threatening to score. This included the banning of new wooden grandstands at all sports venues in the UK. The game was irrelevant. A Bradford Disaster Appeal Fund raised 3.5m for the victims and their families. Some repair work was carried out, but in July 1984 the club was warned again, this time by a county council engineer, because of the club's plans to claim for ground improvements from the Football Trust. The Bradford way was keep it to ourselves - it worked collectively that we did that. "[33], Central to the test case were two letters sent to Bradford City's Club Secretary by the West Yorkshire Fire Brigade; the second letter dated 18 July 1984 specifically highlighted in full the improvements needed to be actioned at the ground as well as the fire risk at the main stand. Many were burnt to death at the turnstiles gates, which had also been locked after the match had begun. The Chief Constable of West Yorkshire, Mr Colin Sampson, said yesterday that a team of doctors and pathologists had worked throughout the night trying to identify the dead. 1.7M subscribers in the CatastrophicFailure community. Since 1903, when the club was formed, Bradford City Association Football Club had played their home games at the ground. "It is the little things that show how much people are still involved the fire still has a big impact on people. He started to walk home, unsure of what had happened to his father. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. We, and the world, need Burning Man and Black Rock City more than ever. At 3.40pm, five minutes before half-time, a glowing light was spotted three rows from the back of block G. "We were stood in line with the 18-yard, the penalty area, when we saw some smoke and a bit of fire diagonally from where we were. Bradford City continues to support the burns unit at the University of Bradford as its official charity. He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. More than 250 others were injured in one of the. "I saw people die in the stand - but it was only until then that I realised the scale of it.". The government inquiry into the disaster concluded the fire spread "faster than a man could run". The stand slopes downwards from the South Parade. They stood outside the headquarters, staring at nothing in particular. Disaster struck at 3.43 pm. Twenty nine years ago on this date, 56 people tragically died when a fire erupted at Bradford City's Valley Parade ground The day was supposed to be one of celebration for Bradford who had just won the Third Division trophy. [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. At the time, however, Harrison says, Bradford just wanted to move on. Yet many of those with terrible memories of the tragedy also take heart in the compassion born out of the devastation. It's terrifying how quickly fire spreads in the wrong circumstances. It was also a catalyst for the substantial redevelopment and modernisation of many British football grounds within the following thirty years. After 40 minutes of the first half, fans had begun to complain about the drab match and the 0-0 score. 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. The team's coach, Mr Terry Yorath, ran on to the pitch to try to help people away from the stand. [17], One witness saw paper or debris on fire, about nine inches (230mm) below the floor boards. One man clambered over burning seats to help a fan,[18] as did player John Hawley,[15] and one officer led fans to an exit, only to find it shut and had to turn around. "I was supposed to meet my father at my grandfather's house, but I was a bit late so I went straight to the game so I didn't miss the festivities.". [58] Following this report, Leslie Brownlie, who was the nephew in question, is reported to have said that his uncle never made such an admission of starting the fire. The man in charge of investigating the fire, Detective Superintendent Kevin Cooper was at the game. The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. 'They did not have a chance. He was asked if precautions would have been adequate had the club been in the Second Division. The timber construction of St. Andrew's Stand, Main Stand and the roof of its popular Railway End terrace were immediately condemned as fire hazards, which saw seating capacity briefly cut to nil. The scene in there was one of silence and shock. Surviving supporters, former Bradford players, the sole television commentator at the stadium and the judge who led the government inquiry tell the BBC about that fateful afternoon and its aftermath. "It is unbelievable how quickly the fire took hold. As many supporters still required rescue from the stand, they were unable to immediately start fighting the source of the fire. The money raised from this record was contributed to fund the internationally renowned burns unit that was established in partnership between the University of Bradford and Bradford Royal Infirmary, immediately after the fire, which has also been Bradford City's official charity for well over a decade. Forty-two minutes into the first half of the game, he looked to his left to see smoke and flames rising from the old wooden seats. The 4-alarm fire started in a one-story lumber storage building and spread to an adjacent building . People ran onto the pitch with their clothes on fire while others were trapped at the back of the stand where they had gone to try to escape through the turnstiles. Fletcher has been the only survivor to publicly challenge the inquiry's findings. [2] The main stand was described as a "mammoth structure", but was unusual for its time because of its place on the side of a hill. I looked down and I saw my hands melting. 56 people dead. The flames suddenly appeared and the whole roof took alight,' he said. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Now a new film claims an Australian was responsible for the worst . Football architect Archibald Leitch was commissioned to carry out the work. And the black and twisted skeleton of the burnt stand stood out in the night. [] I still have terrible memories of the day, but it is the humanity of those that helped us that I reflect on."[41]. 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. Former Bradford midfielder John Hendrie, who was playing in the match: "We had already won the league, all the hard work had been done. Helm: "There was a throw-in in front of the stand where the fire started - something caught my eye. Once we went out it was mayhem, manic, chaotic. Just look at how many people were standing around just 50-60 meters away from the blazing inferno. The fire happened during a football match. 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's a nice little business and it's something positive that came out of a tragedy. Fans in the next stand (the "Bradford End") pulled down the fence separating them from the pitch. On 23 February 1987, Sir Joseph Cantley found the club two thirds responsible and the county council (which by this time had been abolished) one third responsible. We use necessary cookies to make our site work. Copyright , Fire Brigades Union, 2023. The team was presented with the Division Three championship trophy - their first trophy in 56 years - in front of 11,000 jubilant fans before the start of their match against Lincoln City. England won the re-match 64. "It's therapeutic and I've met so many people through doing this." "A disaster is not black and white - it is a mass of factors.". Fifty-six people died. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. 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. "But the feeling here is that it is hard to believe that someone would purposefully start a fire. [10] The stand seats did not have risers; this had allowed a large accumulation of rubbish and paper waste in the cavity space under the stand, which had not been cleared for many months. The courts held the club to be two thirds responsible, finding that it gave "no or very little thought to fire precautions" despite repeated warnings. [39], The club's chairman, Stafford Heginbotham, said: "It was to be our day". 1909 - Flores Theater fire, Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, on February 15, killed 250. 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. Hendrie: "Several minutes before half-time I saw there was a wee bit of bother. The Bradford Burns Unit was set up by Professor David Sharpe after he received many of the victims following the fire. I hope you enjoy some of the fascinating stories we have here.#History #Disasters 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. [10][16] More than 265 supporters were injured. "The one thing I remember at the time is we were grateful that we got an answer quickly after the inquiry. The only fire extinguishers in the ground were in the clubroom, which is also in the main stand. I don't see that. The Bradford way was keep it to ourselves - it worked collectively that we did that. Criticising Bradford City during the case, Mr. Michael Ogden QC, highlighted that the Club 'gave no or very little thought to fire precautions', despite repeated warnings. A discarded cigarette and a dilapidated wooden stand, which had survived because the club did not have the money to replace it, and accumulated paper litter, were considered to have conspired to cause the worst disaster in the history of the Football League. The Popplewell Inquiry found that the club had been warned about the fire risk that the rubbish accumulating under the stand had posed. Original television coverage of the fire, as caught by cameras covering the match. On the recording are Dene Michael (Black Lace), The Chuckle Brothers, Clive Jackson of Dr & The Medics, Owen Paul, Billy Pearce, Billy Shears, Flint Bedrock, Danny Tetley and Rick Wild of The Overlanders. Most of those who escaped onto the pitch were saved.[10]. Artist Paul Town, who now lives in Baildon, was 15 at the time of the fire. The inquiry had found that the club had been warned that the accumulation of rubbish beneath the stands was a fire risk. There was a bit of paper on fire, but it was so small.". The heat inside the stand literally ignited people where they stood. ", Hendrie: "The players were told to go to the pub at the top of the road, we didn't know at this point if anyone had been killed. One woman was seen running around the ground with no skin on her arms and face. "All you could see was black cloud. [11], The fire escalated very rapidly, and flames became visible; police started to evacuate the stand. We had to run up the stairs, through the office doors and out on to the street. When cross examined by QC Robert Smith, then Chairman Stafford Heginbotham said he knew about the fire risk at the ground. 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'. [8], The Bradford City matchday squad of players and staff consisted of Terry Yorath, Trevor Cherry, Chris Withe, Don Goodman, Eric McManus, Tony Clegg, John Hawley, Dave Evans, Bryan Edwards, John Hendrie, Mark Ellis, Stuart McCall, Peter Jackson, Bobby Campbell, Martin Singleton and Greg Abbott. Funnily enough I was thinking 'I'm going to miss the second half at this rate'. The stories of escapes are legion. In the panic that ensued, fleeing crowds escaped on to the pitch but others at the back of the stand tried to break down locked exit doors to escape. There were no extinguishers in the stand's passageway for fear of vandalism, and one spectator ran to the clubhouse to find one but was overcome by smoke and impeded by others trying to escape. The disaster led to rigid new safety standards in UK stadiums, including the banning of new wooden grandstands. Christopher Hammond, who was 12 on the day, said on the 20th anniversary of the fire: "As a 12-year-old, it was easy to move on I didn't realise how serious it was until I looked at the press coverage over the next few days. Others ran forward to try to clamber over a fence and a small wall on to the pitch. So I threw myself over the wall and luckily someone dived in to catch me before I hit the floor.". Valley Parade in Bradford, West Yorkshire, was built in 1886 and was initially the home ground of Manningham Rugby Football Club. Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. Today, locals continue to raise money for the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit in memory of the victims of the fire. Martin Fletcher was talking to BBC Look North. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 13:41. For the 30th anniversary of the fire a new version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" was recorded at Voltage Studios in Bradford. [31] In 1988, the first compensation payments were made to survivors of the fire, with over 40 people receiving up to 40,000 each. A giant Christian cross, made up of two large charred wooden members[44] that had once been part of the stand, was constructed in front of the middle of the stand and behind the pitchside speaker's platform. "Me and my dad eventually got out safely but it was a bit of a struggle at one point because the walls getting down to the pitch level were quite high I didn't get a growth spurt until I was 16 or 17.". The fact the inquiry also embraced the investigation into another incident which happened on the same day, a riot in which a young boy died at Birmingham City, makes it seem more frivolous. "I walked past a public telephone outside the ground and there were queues of people waiting to ring home to say: 'I'm OK'. The extinguishers were put there so that they would be out of the way of fans who could use them as missiles, which apparently had happened previously. 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. "That was the legacy of the tragedy. An ancient wooden spectator stand and a dropped cigarette - the ingredients for one of Britain's deadliest soccer tragedies. Those who escaped walked to a nearby pub to use the phone to ring home, while others arrived in a daze outside the police headquarters to try and trace relatives. [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. The Bradford City stadium fire was the worst fire disaster in the history of football.. But I've never spoken to anyone who thought the fire wasn't anything other than a tragic accident. The Man burns on September 02, 2023. Police worked until 4am the next morning, under lighting, to remove all the bodies. 'This was a dreadful afternoon. I had no idea. That's when everybody else had the same thought. "I've always loved art but I owned businesses in construction so I've never had the time or a chance to follow it up," he says. [15] They included three who tried to escape through the toilets, 27 who were found by exit K and turnstiles 6 to 9 at the rear centre of the stand, and two elderly people who had died in their seats. After Hillsborough, the Bradford City FC stadium fire was the second worst sporting tragedy in England, leaving 56 dead and at least 265 injured. Bradford fan Matthew Wildman, who was aged 17 and using crutches because of rheumatoid arthritis: "When I got to one of the final walls, there was an eight-foot drop at the other side, concrete at the bottom. Helm: "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". 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. 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. "All I could see was eerie white lights that the fire brigade had set up and the smoke still in the sky. A police officer shouted to a colleague for an extinguisher, but his call was misheard and instead the fire brigade were radioed. Loading. A fire at a third division match between Bradford City and Lincoln City killed 56, including 11 children, and injured hundreds more. Mr Antony Burrows said: 'One man was stood near me with his hair on fire. 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? Pendleton: "Many people still don't want to talk about the disaster. Wealso use analytics cookies that don't track usersto help us improve it. ", IBT UK Morning Brief - Let the best of International News come to you. [52], On 1 May 2010, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fire the football TV show Football Focus was hosted from Valley Parade by Dan Walker, the show included interviews with Terry Yorath and John Hendrie.
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