As the blaze spread, the wooden stands and roofcovered with layers of highly flammable bituminous roofing feltquickly went ablaze. Today marks the 35th anniversary of one of the worst disasters in the history of British football. The fire at a Brooklyn lumber storage building sent plumes of smoke over Williamsburg on Tuesday. It made me realise life is too short and I'm a happier person for it.". Fifty people die in a fire in the grandstand at a soccer stadium in Bradford, England, on May 11, 1985. 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. The heat inside the stand literally ignited people where they stood. The team's coach, Mr Terry Yorath, ran on to the pitch to try to help people away from the stand. Some of the dead were found at the bottom of these steps. In March 1985 the club's plans became more apparent when it took delivery of steel for a new roof. The inquiry had found that the club had been warned that the accumulation of rubbish beneath the stands was a fire risk. 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. Representatives from the fire brigade were due to go to the club tomorrow to inspect it and see whether regulations were being observed. A Bradford Disaster Appeal Fund raised 3.5m for the victims and their families. 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. He was actually one of the detectives involved in one of the gravest miscarriages of justices in the country, the murder of Carol Wilkinson in Bradford, where someone was locked up for 20 years for a murder he didn't commit."[60]. "One of my most haunting images was being on the bus home after dark and going past Valley Parade. Fletcher has been the only survivor to publicly challenge the inquiry's findings. 05/10/15 AT 12:00 PM BST Crowds on the pitch at Bradford City's Valley Parade stadium after the stand caught fire Getty Images Fifty-six people were killed, 265 were injured and thousands. Of the 56people who died in the fire,[2] 54 were Bradford supporters and two supported Lincoln. 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. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. It seemed to put it out. [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. Helm: "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". It's a nice little business and it's something positive that came out of a tragedy. The mood before the match on the 11 May 1985 against Lincoln City was one of jubilation. "Since then I have thought of everything we could have done, but we didn't have the presence of mind to run across the pitch and tell people to get out. It was during this treatment that Sharpe began to develop the Bradford Sling,[21] which applies even pressure across sensitive areas. "I parked my van outside because I started making enough money painting as I was in construction. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. Samuel Firth, a founder of the supporters' club, was the oldest victim at 86; four 11-year-old boys were the youngest. "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. A minute later he saw a small plume of smoke so he poured his coffee on it and so did his son. There were many cases of heroism, with more than 50 people later receiving police awards or commendations for bravery. 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. ', 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. [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. Like all areas of forensic investigations, it has come on leaps and bounds. However, the responsibility of the Club is, in my view, very much the greater and I apportion responsibility between the two defendants as to two-thirds on the first defendant and one-third on the third (sic) defendant. "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.". 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. Former Bradford midfielder John Hendrie, who was playing in the match: "We had already won the league, all the hard work had been done. Although I was only 12 at the time, 11 May 1985 is a day. It is not thought that there was any crowd trouble in this section but one theory the police are investigating is that a flare or smoke-bomb was thrown or was accidentally dropped. We were given the trophy before the game in front of the supporters and had to do a lap of honour. Fifty-six people were killed, 265 were injured and thousands bore witness to the worst fire disaster in the history of English football. 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. 1909 - Flores Theater fire, Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, on February 15, killed 250. England won the re-match 64. Last updated on 10 May 201510 May 2015.From the section Football, "People didn't die because of fires at football grounds. The Popplewell Inquiry found that a discarded cigarette and an accumulation of litter beneath the stand were to blame. At the final home match against Barnsley at the end of April, Bradford City fans collected more than 8,000 in a bucket collection. People were falling on to each other and screaming. This day was for them. Once we went out it was mayhem, manic, chaotic. Valley Parade during the early 1990s, after it had been redeveloped following the fire. Those are the words of David Pendleton, a survivor of the Bradford City fire disaster, which happened 30 years ago. Cigarette smoking was also banned at all grounds with wooden stands. 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. [30], The outcome of the test case resulted in over 154 claims being addressed (110 civilians and 44 police officers)[31] by the injured or bereaved. However as the game against Lincoln progressed, a fire began just before half-time in the stand that ran alongside the pitch. 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. It was nearly double the season's average of 6,610 and included 3,000fans in the ground's main stand. Pendleton: "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. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. [45] In total, 28 police officers and 22 supporters, who were publicly documented as having saved at least one life, later received police commendations or bravery awards. Your brain tells you, you are not going anywhere. All existing grandstands deemed fire risks were faced with immediate closure. Stories From 11 May. He was completely on fire and it looked as though he simply did not know what had happened to him.'. The fire started five minutes before half-time during the match on 11 May between Bradford and Lincoln City. Bradford City continues to support the burns unit at the University of Bradford as its official charity. 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. "Then we ran out in our tracksuits each holding a massive card with a letter. Together, flanked by undocumented supporters, they managed to clear all but one person who made it to the front of the stand. He saw smoke coming from a small area of the stand and thought that someone had let off a flare. [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. We had not been told anything.". [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. [49], Parrs Wood Press published Four Minutes to Hell: The Story of the Bradford City Fire (2005) by author Paul Firth;[50] the title refers to the estimated time it took for the stand to be completely ablaze from the first flames being spotted. [4], Although there had been some changes to other parts of the ground, the main stand remained unaltered by 1985. We couldn't breathe. 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. [47] Scriptwriters of the play spent hours with the survivors and victims families. It's terrifying how quickly fire spreads in the wrong circumstances. After 40 minutes of the first half, fans had begun to complain about the drab match and the 0-0 score. Read about our approach to external linking. [36], In 2010, Susan Fletcher's son and survivor of the Bradford City fire (and witness to the Hillsborough disaster), Martin Fletcher, openly criticised the club's hierarchy at the time of the fire and the subsequent investigation. "I was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. 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. I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. We were sat in our football kit, we didn't know what to do. Eight fires in the 18 years before the Bradford City fire were identified, many catastrophic and leading to large insurance payouts. BurningMan.NYC will announce the dates and process for the 2023 grant cycle on this site & all BurningMan.NYC social channels in early Spring. "[35], The total amount of compensation to the 154 claimants was reported to be as high as 20million, with the payouts covered by insurance taken out by the club. More than 3,500 people were crammed into the main stand area and this prevented people from moving away from the blaze quickly. [40] Matthew Wildman was 17 at the time and needed crutches to walk because of rheumatoid arthritis. [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. One retired mill worker made his way to the pitch, but was walking about on fire from head to foot. When the game began there was no way out for them, except by going on to the pitch. That's when everybody else had the same thought. It was unprecedented.". The fire happened during a football match. 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. The heat was so intense it caused car windows to shatter in the street. There were no fire extinguishers. Edited by BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko. The blaze quickly engulfed the stand as Bradford played Lincoln City and claimed the lives of 59 people on May 11, 1985. It was sort of the good thing to come out of the nightmare," says Simon Parker, a football reporter for the Telegraph and Argus. Fire on Upper Castle Street, Bradford Yorkshire Evening Post On This Day 1985: The Bradford City Fire 0:15 Bradford Mill fire 24:43 The Bradford Fire 0:26 Large fire in Bradford Yorkshire Evening Post Bradford Mill fire 0:34 Bradford Great Horton Mill fire 0:10 Fire at Bradford school (video: Glynn Beck) 4:05 bradford city fc fire 1985 When cross examined by QC Robert Smith, then Chairman Stafford Heginbotham said he knew about the fire risk at the ground. Everybody in the city was devastated, but there was an amazing number of volunteers. 1985: Fans killed in Bradford stadium fire. Owing to windy conditions, less than four minutes later the entire wooden stand was engulfed in smoke and fire. Interviews conducted by BBC Radio Leeds' Tim Daley. The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. It was an awful thing to watch.". Ironically, off-duty firemen were at the ground selling raffle tickets for a charity football match which should have been held yesterday. She was hysterical and trying to find her three children. The stand had been officially condemned and was due to be replaced with a steel structure after the season ended. Bradford City Stadium Fire 56 Dead & 100's Injured The Bradford City stadium fire was a stadium disaster that occurred during an English League Third Division fixture between Bradford City and Lincoln City on Saturday, 11 May 1985, killing 56 and injuring at least 265. I saw a group of people around the smoke laughing. They were hampered further by the fact that doors at the back of the stand were locked to try to stop people coming in without paying. Some people seem to have run back up the slope, thinking that they could get back through the turnstiles, and were burned alive. He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. The 4-alarm fire started in a one-story lumber storage building and spread to an adjacent building . [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. Valley Parade in Bradford, West Yorkshire, was built in 1886 and was initially the home ground of Manningham Rugby Football Club. [5] However, he also warned the club of a build-up of litter beneath the stand because of a gap between the seats. The game was irrelevant.". The scene in there was one of silence and shock. However, the fire had consumed the stand entirely by that point and they were faced with huge flames and very dense smoke. 48,785 Location Lake Jonathan Creek The footage never gets any less shocking. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. His son Christopher normally watches from the stand but on Saturday he joined other fans elsewhere. People had walked through turnstiles and along a wooden corridor before descending the steps into their seats. [22], Immediately after the fire, Sharpe planned and treated the injuries of over 200 individuals, with many experimental treatments being used. The blaze, at the Happy Land Social Club in the Bronx, killed 87 people, the . We sat in the main stand the week before, but we had decided to move on that day," he says. There is no evidence in the book, he is just pointing out there are some coincidences. All Rights Reserved. [10] The call was timed at 3:43pm. A police officer shouted to a colleague for an extinguisher, but his call was misheard and instead the fire brigade were radioed. One elderly man started to walk across the pitch with his clothes and face ablaze. It was the brainchild of Bradford City fan Lloyd Spencer with all profits going to the Bradford Royal Infirmary Burns Unit.[43]. The stand had already been condemned, and the demolition teams were due to start work two days later. Spread by the wind, the wooden roof, which was covered with tarpaulin and sealed with asphalt and bitumen, caught fire. He asks the reader to make their mind up about whether these fires were a coincidence or not.". 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. He started to walk home, unsure of what had happened to his father. [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. [10][11], Bradford's Telegraph & Argus newspaper published a souvenir issue for 11 May, entitled, "Spit and Polish for the Parade Ground". [7] As it was the first piece of league silverware that the club had captured since they won the Division Three (North) title 56years earlier, 11,076supporters were in the ground. "Until I arrived home my mum and my brother had no idea whether I was alive or dead. Following his own 15 year investigation Into the fire, which killed four of his family members while he escaped, former tax accountant Martin Fletcher released 56: The Story of the Bradford Fire (2015). The book also raises concerns about the speed of the inquiry and the fact that it commenced a few weeks after the fire and lasted for only a few days, whereas other inquiries into similar incidents, pre and post the Bradford fire, have taken years to come to fruition and months to be heard. Part of the Appeal funds were raised by a recording of "You'll Never Walk Alone"[42] from Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical Carousel by The Crowd (including Gerry Marsden of Gerry and the Pacemakers, who had recorded the 1963 version that led to Liverpool adopting it as their motto and team song), which reached number one in the UK Singles chart. "The referee blew his whistle to stop the game and told us to get back to the dressing room.". Police removed the last body from the ground at 4 am yesterday, working under arc lights. 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. "The letters that went to the club, the council's failings, the police's failings, even as supporters we allowed a culture where the gates were locked. [1] When the association football club was formed, the ground was changed very little and had no covered accommodation. Called 'The 56' the play dramatises actual accounts of the Bradford City Fire with the purpose of the play showing how in times of adversity, the Football Club and the local community came together. 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". But a minute or so later there was suddenly a bigger whoosh of smoke so they went to get a steward. His face was burned and his car, which he had parked outside the ground, was destroyed. Copyright 2023 IBTimes UK. The club's success had swollen the crowd to 10,000 and arguments will rage about fire precautions at the ground. The stand itself was engulfed in seconds, almost as if petrol had been ignited throughout the block. "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. The smoke was choking. Supporters either ran upwards to the back of the stand or downwards to the pitch to escape. 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. 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. Then the flames and smoke were all over the place.'. The fire was described as the worst fire disaster in the history of British football, and the worst football related disaster since 66spectators died at Ibrox in 1971. Exactly 79 years to the day after the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, another tragic fire occurred in New York City. "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. 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. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. Bradford, playing into a strong wind, were struggling to break down a Lincoln side already safe from relegation. 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. It wasn't just something that happened in the past.". There is a twin memorial sculpture, unveiled on 11 May 1986, which has the names of the dead inscribed on it. He lit a cigarette and when it was coming to an end he put it down on to the floorboard and tried to put his foot on it to put it out. 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. "The one thing I remember at the time is we were grateful that we got an answer quickly after the inquiry. [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. "I remember not being able to watch it, but we couldn't get out. But I've never spoken to anyone who thought the fire wasn't anything other than a tragic accident. [11], The fire escalated very rapidly, and flames became visible; police started to evacuate the stand. "I was in the main stand when the fire happened," he says.
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