They wouldn't let us because then people would get in the way of fire engines, ambulances and police trying to get in. They were immediately promoted back to the Football League in 1988, and survived for 23 years before being relegated again in 2011. The fire claimed young and old alike, with most fatalities occurring at the rear of the stand where people sought escape only to find turnstiles locked. The fire happened during a football match. Football architect Archibald Leitch was commissioned to carry out the work. "The fire still has a big impact on people," Parker says. " Burning Man," " Burning Man Project," " Black Rock City ", and . But a minute or so later there was suddenly a bigger whoosh of smoke so they went to get a steward. The Documentary highlighted the 'poison pen letters' and graffiti targeted at the then club chairman Stafford Heginbotham over accusations that he was in some way personally responsible for the deaths of the 56 people who died at the fire.[54]. Valley Parade in Bradford, West Yorkshire, was built in 1886 and was initially the home ground of Manningham Rugby Football Club. The heat inside the stand literally ignited people where they stood. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. We use necessary cookies to make our site work. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. The heat was so intense it caused car windows to shatter in the street. [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. The worst fire disaster in English football history played out on live television on May 11, after Valley Parade's main stand caught fire during a match between Bradford City and Lincoln City on . There is no evidence in the book, he is just pointing out there are some coincidences. The next day work began on clearing the burnt out shell of the stand, and Justice Popplewell released his findings into the disaster. Another player went into the office space to ensure there was nobody there. "It made me realise life is too short." One elderly man started to walk across the pitch with his clothes and face ablaze. [] I still have terrible memories of the day, but it is the humanity of those that helped us that I reflect on."[41]. It was nearly double the season's average of 6,610 and included 3,000fans in the ground's main stand. The Bradford City stadium fire was the worst fire disaster in the history of football.. Our world has a varied history full of terrible tragedies, bizarre tales, unexplained events, and extravagant people. Edited by BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko. The Man burns on September 02, 2023. "I walked past a public telephone outside the ground and there were queues of people waiting to ring home to say: 'I'm OK'. We couldn't breathe. An inquiry launched in the aftermath of the disaster led to legislation to improve safety at football grounds. Someone came in and shouted: 'Get out, get out there's a fire'. "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. 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. More than 200 people were taken to hospital, many with terrible injuries. We were sat in our football kit, we didn't know what to do. It wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". [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. According to ABC News, though, several hundred people in the Chinese city of Luoyang decided to cut loose on Christmas night 2000 by heading to a nightclub housed on the fourth floor of a multi-use industrial building.A fire broke out in the basement of the structure . When cross examined by QC Robert Smith, then Chairman Stafford Heginbotham said he knew about the fire risk at the ground. "[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. 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. He appealed to people to be patient while forensic experts identified bodies. Most Bradfordians have accepted the fire was a terrible misfortune. [10] The call was timed at 3:43pm. The blaze is believed to have begun when a dropped cigarette lit rubbish under the wooden seats of the wooden Main Stand at Bradford City's Valley Parade stadium 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. From 50 to 60 yards away, it was burning our faces it was unbearable. [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. [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. [17], One witness saw paper or debris on fire, about nine inches (230mm) below the floor boards. I hope you enjoy some of the fascinating stories we have here.#History #Disasters The 4-alarm fire started in a one-story lumber storage building and spread to an adjacent building . Although I was only 12 at the time, 11 May 1985 is a day. 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. "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. he asks. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. 'I think that is unlikely,' he said. "I want the truth to be out, the myths to be broken, so that I can get on with my life rather than knowing this information and having to live with this information. What Is Burning Man? "I was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. Spreading with almost unbelievable speed, a small fire under a wooden. Christmas Day is supposed to be happy and pleasant, a time to gather with loved ones for a chill and relaxing celebration. There was a bit of paper on fire, but it was so small.". She was an. An ancient wooden spectator stand and a dropped cigarette - the ingredients for one of Britain's deadliest soccer tragedies. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. Although some attributed Lincoln City's sudden demise to the psychological effects of the fire on its players (together with the resignation of successful manager Colin Murphy shortly before the fire), it symbolised the wider crisis that the introduction of new safety legislation brought to Lincoln's Sincil Bank home. [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. "We stayed in the pub for hours. The Popplewell Inquiry found that a discarded cigarette and an accumulation of litter beneath the stand were to blame. Spreading with almost unbelievable speed, a small fire under a wooden bench consumed the entire stand in under four minutes.Original TV footage: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x31qcmtIf you would like to support this channel - https://buymeacoffee.com/TheRavensEyeAlthough focused primarily on disasters, this channel is all about the interesting, the strange, the unsolved, the tragic. Some had been crushed as they tried to crawl under turnstiles to escape. Bradford City were supposed to be celebrating on 11 May 1985. We had to run up the stairs, through the office doors and out on to the street. Many who had walked out of the fire stood on the pitch looking back in horror as the flames destroyed the stand. Interviews conducted by BBC Radio Leeds' Tim Daley. 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). You may notice some big changes in Black Rock City this year. "But the feeling here is that it is hard to believe that someone would purposefully start a fire. Only one person had been positively identified by police by early last night. The 1984-85 season had been one of the most successful in Bradford City's 82-year history. The team's coach, Mr Terry Yorath, ran on to the pitch to try to help people away from the stand. A call was made on a police radio to the police operations room in Bradford and relayed to the fire brigade at 3.43 pm. 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. "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.". Only then do you realise the huge network of people the fire involved. 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'. Others ran forward to try to clamber over a fence and a small wall on to the pitch. His father Tony went back the following day and said: "I wondered how anybody had got out alive, but I also began to feel guilty that I had got out when so many hadn't." Some of the dead were found at the bottom of these steps. [4], Although there had been some changes to other parts of the ground, the main stand remained unaltered by 1985. Television cameras spotted the outbreak of fire in Valley Parade's main stand at 15:40 BST. Eight fires in the 18 years before the Bradford City fire were identified, many catastrophic and leading to large insurance payouts. 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. "We went out on to the pitch and I could see so many happy faces. I looked down and I saw my hands melting. However as the game against Lincoln progressed, a fire began just before half-time in the stand that ran alongside the pitch. [29] The Health and Safety Executive who were also part of the legal action were found to be non-liable. [1] When the association football club was formed, the ground was changed very little and had no covered accommodation. Website by, Bradford City FC stadium fire | 11th May 1985, Fundraising for firefighters and their families.
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