burning man bradford city stadium fire

The whole fire seemed to erupt in seconds,' he said. 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. Warning: Some readers may find parts of this content distressing. "We had already won the league, all the hard work had been done. [15], At 3:44pm, five minutes before half-time, the first sign of a firea glowing lightwas noticed three rows from the back of block G,[10][16] as reported by television commentator John Helm. 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'. 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 don't see that. The stand had already been condemned, and the demolition teams were due to start work two days later. [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 fire brigade arrived at the ground four minutes after they were initially alerted. One woman was seen running around the ground with no skin on her arms and face. One retired mill worker made his way to the pitch, but was walking about on fire from head to foot. "As a 15-year-old, you don't really know how much of an impact an event like that will have on your life," Town says. Bits of my arms, bits of my legs, part of my face, part of my scalp. [12] The work was expected to cost 400,000 (1.3million today). Sir Oliver Popplewell, the High Court judge who led the Valley Parade inquiry in 1985: "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. Superintendent Barry Osborne, divisional commander for the football club area, who was injured in the fire said that many policemen cried when they saw how badly people had been burned. About 3,000 people were in Valley Parade's main stand, escaping by climbing over walls on to the pitch or through the usual exit gates. Fifty-six people died. 'The smoke was very, very dense. 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'. 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. The Popplewell Inquiry found that a discarded cigarette and an accumulation of litter beneath the stand were to blame. I hope you enjoy some of the fascinating stories we have here.#History #Disasters [6], The 198485 season had been one of Bradford City's most successful seasons, ending with City clinching the championship title courtesy of a 20 victory against Bolton Wanderers in the penultimate game of the season. Nigel Adams who worked for 12 years as a fire investigator with a British fire service was spurred on by the book to join the call for a fresh inquiry, stating that Fletcher's book was "one of the best accounts of a fire, as seen from a victim's point of view, and as a piece of investigative writing, I have ever read". 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. Bradford council introduced its emergency plans procedure yesterday to give aid to many families affected by the disaster. Cigarette smoking was also banned at all grounds with wooden stands. It was the brainchild of Bradford City fan Lloyd Spencer with all profits going to the Bradford Royal Infirmary Burns Unit.[43]. 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. 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. Two or three burly men put their weight against it and smashed the gate open. " Burning Man," " Burning Man Project," " Black Rock City ", and . 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. Hendrie: "Several minutes before half-time I saw there was a wee bit of bother. [40] Matthew Wildman was 17 at the time and needed crutches to walk because of rheumatoid arthritis. Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. It was an awful thing to watch.". 2022 DECOMPRESSION WAS DREAMY . 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. 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. It occurred during a league match in front of record numbers of spectators, on Saturday, 11 May 1985, killing 56 and injuring at least 265. Fire disaster at football match (Bradford City stadium fire) - YouTube Sign in to confirm your age 0:00 / 5:23 Sign in to confirm your age This video may be inappropriate for some users.. 'It is the worst day in my life. [citation needed] Mathew Wildman, aged 17 at the time of the fire, commented that "I must have had five different experiments carried out on me with all sorts of new techniques for skin grafts and I had potions injected into me that helped my face repair naturally over time. The flames suddenly appeared and the whole roof took alight,' he said. Supporters either ran upwards to the back of the stand or downwards to the pitch to escape. It's terrifying how quickly fire spreads in the wrong circumstances. Bradford City initially prospered in the Second Division only missing out on promotion to the First Division in 1988 after failing to beat Ipswich Town at home on the final day of their first full season back at Valley Parade. A Bradford Disaster Appeal Fund raised 3.5m for the victims and their families. 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". Martin Fletcher was talking to BBC Look North. [11] Those who escaped were taken out of the ground to neighbouring homes and a pub, where a television screened World of Sport, which broadcast video recorded of the fire just an hour after it was filmed. 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. It was unprecedented.". He is quoted as saying: "I don't believe the statement of retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer at all. The Popplewell Inquiry found that the club had been warned about the fire risk that the rubbish accumulating under the stand had posed. Copyright , Fire Brigades Union, 2023. [22], Immediately after the fire, Sharpe planned and treated the injuries of over 200 individuals, with many experimental treatments being used. Most of those who escaped onto the pitch were saved.[10]. The firemen who arrived there were met by a wall of flame and dense black smoke. 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. 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. It wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". Heginbotham died in 1995, aged 61, and was never prosecuted for the stadium fire, despite the coroner later saying he had given serious consideration to bringing a charge of manslaughter as the club had failed to act on three separate warnings about a potential fire risk. One man clambered over burning seats to help a fan, as did player John Hawley, and one officer led fans to an exit, only to find it shut and turn around.Bradford City's coach Terry Yorath, whose family was in the stand, ran onto the pitch to help evacuate people. Recommended The untold stories of the 1985 fire The fire started five minutes before half-time during the match on 11 May between Bradford and Lincoln City. Other parents whose children had not arrived home on Saturday called at the police station or sat in cars outside, waiting for news. Uncensored coverage of the fire was transmitted minutes after the event on World of Sport and the BBC's Grandstand after the video cassette was physically driven to Yorkshire Television. Below the seats were rows of litter which had piled up throughout the season, said witnesses. They were donated by Bradford's twin city of Hamm, Germany, and are situated in front of Bradford City Hall in both locations. [48] Profits from the play's run at The Edinburgh Fringe were donated to the Bradford Burns Unit. They were at fault, but the fault was that no-one in authority seems ever to have properly appreciated the real gravity of this fire hazard and consequently no-one gave it the attention it certainly ought to have received. 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. The stand had been officially condemned and was due to be replaced with a steel structure after the season ended. As he scaled the brick perimeter wall at the front, his father stayed behind to help others escape. An ancient wooden spectator stand and a dropped cigarette - the ingredients for one of Britain's deadliest soccer tragedies. Now they will begin another inquiry, into the cause of the Bradford fire. People were clambering over the wall on to the ground with their clothes and hair on fire. It has a black marble fascia on which the names and ages of those that died are inscribed in gold, and a black marble platform on which people can leave flowers and mementos. 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. Once we went out it was mayhem, manic, chaotic. Town began to paint two years ago, first of the old Bradford Park Avenue ground, before moving onto other stadiums. [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. ", Hendrie: "We stayed in the pub for hours. The match, Bradford against Lincoln, was to have been a joyous climax to the club winning the Third Division championship and being promoted to the Second Division. However, as there was no real precedent, most Bradfordians accepted that the fire was a terrible piece of misfortune. The scene in there was one of silence and shock. Videos, gifs, or aftermath photos of machinery, structures, or devices It transpired that the wooden stand had already been condemned and was set to be demolished just two days after the tragedy. And all you could smell was burning.". "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". One family was in tears, the mother shaking. Everybody in the city was devastated, but there was an amazing number of volunteers. However as the game against Lincoln progressed, a fire began just before half-time in the stand that ran alongside the pitch. So I decided to give it that next push. It seemed to put it out. I had no idea. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. Each year Lincoln send representatives to the annual memorial service in Bradford city centre and between 2007 and 2009, were managed by Bradford's captain that day, Peter Jackson. Radiated heat from the burning roof of the stand set fire to the clothing of fans trapped underneath. "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. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. [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. "We wouldn't normally have covered that game - no question about it. 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. Last updated on 10 May 201510 May 2015.From the section Football, "People didn't die because of fires at football grounds. Valley Parade during the early 1990s, after it had been redeveloped following the fire. 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. Many were burnt to death at the turnstiles gates, which had also been locked after the match had begun. "All I could see was eerie white lights that the fire brigade had set up and the smoke still in the sky. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. People were falling on to each other and screaming. 1908 - Rhoads Opera House fire, Boyertown, Pennsylvania, killed 170. "I walked past a public telephone outside the ground and there were queues of people waiting to ring home to say: 'I'm OK'. ", 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. The stand slopes downwards from the South Parade. That's when everybody else had the same thought. Footage of the accident at this point shows levels of confusion among the spectatorswhile many were trying to escape or to cross the pitch to the relative safety of the neighbouring stands, other spectators were observed cheering or waving to the still-rolling pitchside cameras. I've never seen anything like it. We were sat in our football kit, we didn't know what to do. This day was for them. While Valley Parade was re-developed, Bradford City played games at various neighbouring grounds: Elland Road, Leeds; Leeds Road, Huddersfield; and Odsal Stadium, Bradford. It is repeated across the country on BBC Two at 23:20 BST on Wednesday, 13 May. ", On 26 January 2016, the IPCC declined calls for an investigation and published its full response online. The match between Bradford City and Lincoln City, the final game of that season, had started in a celebratory atmosphere with the home team receiving the Third Division championship trophy. "All you could see was black cloud. Owing to windy conditions, less than four minutes later the entire wooden stand was engulfed in smoke and fire. Some of the dead were found at the bottom of these steps. Parents and children were laughing and joking with the police as the preliminaries to the game began. The 51 other bodies of children, women and men were so badly burned that identification will take many days. One, now re-situated to that end of the stand where the fire began, is a sculpture donated on the initial re-opening of Valley Parade in December 1986 by Sylvia Graucob, a then Jersey-based former West Yorkshire woman. "[23], On the 25th anniversary of the fire, the University of Bradford established the United Kingdom's largest academic research centre in skin sciences as an extension to its plastic surgery and burns research unit.[24]. He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. We had not been told anything.". His son Christopher normally watches from the stand but on Saturday he joined other fans elsewhere. You could hardly breathe. The fire destroyed the main stand completely and left only burned seats, lamps and metal fences remaining. The next day work began on clearing the burnt out shell of the stand, and Justice Popplewell released his findings into the disaster. The Bradford Burns Unit was set up by Professor David Sharpe after he received many of the victims following the fire. The main stand at Bradford was not surrounded by fencing, and therefore most of the spectators in it could escape onto the pitch if they had been penned in then the death toll would inevitably have been in the hundreds if not the thousands. Sign up and stay up to date with our daily newsletter. Within five minutes the whole stand was engulfed in flames. 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. ", IBT UK Morning Brief - Let the best of International News come to you. 56 people dead. But I've never spoken to anyone who thought the fire wasn't anything other than a tragic accident.

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