The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. [5] However, he also warned the club of a build-up of litter beneath the stand because of a gap between the 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. But looking back and seeing how much it really affected my dad makes me realise what we went through." No one gave it the attention it ought to have received.. .. Bradford, playing into a strong wind, were struggling to break down a Lincoln side already safe from relegation. 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". Previous warnings had also been given about a major build-up of litter in the cavity below the seats in the stand. The game was irrelevant. 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. 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. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. There was a bit of paper on fire, but it was so small.". 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. The stories of escapes are legion. He saw smoke coming from a small area of the stand and thought that someone had let off a flare. [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. "Several minutes before half-time I saw there was a wee bit of bother. Burning timber and molten material began to fall onto the seating below and black smoke enveloped the passageway behind, where fans were trying to escape. He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. The smoke was choking. The club's success had swollen the crowd to 10,000 and arguments will rage about fire precautions at the ground. Television cameras spotted the outbreak of fire in Valley Parade's main stand at 15:40 BST. Grenfell among the UK's worst fire and tower tragedies 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.. Once we went out it was mayhem, manic, chaotic. Copyright , Fire Brigades Union, 2023. Of the 56 people who died in the fire,[2] 54 were Bradford supporters and two supported Lincoln. 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. Disaster struck at 3.43 pm. Somebody looked round and grabbed me by the hood of my coat to pull me over. BBC ON THIS DAY | 11 | 1985: Fans killed in Bradford stadium fire [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. Hideous images linger after carnage of 'celebration' day The scene in there was one of silence and shock. Martin Fletcher, a Bradford fan who lost three generations of his family in the fire, published a memoir of the tragic event called Fifty-Six The Story Of The Bradford Fire, in which he claimed the blaze at Valley Parade was one of nine fires at businesses owned by or associated with Heginbotham. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. "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. The Bradford City Stadium Fire 1985 - The Football Inferno 1985 disaster in Valley Parade Stadium, Bradford, England. 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. 48,785 Location Lake Jonathan Creek The footage never gets any less shocking. [22], Immediately after the fire, Sharpe planned and treated the injuries of over 200 individuals, with many experimental treatments being used. Bits of my arms, bits of my legs, part of my face, part of my scalp. Bradford fire 11.5.1985.mpg - video Dailymotion A bid of 350 has been made for the original painting and Town will sell 56 prints in memorial of those who lost their lives, with the aim of raising 3,000 for the Bradford Burns Unit. Only one person had been positively identified by police by early last night. 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. It was to be our day,' he said. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. More than 250 others were injured in one of the. Eight fires in the 18 years before the Bradford City fire were identified, many catastrophic and leading to large insurance payouts. The whole fire seemed to erupt in seconds,' he said. His son Christopher normally watches from the stand but on Saturday he joined other fans elsewhere. I asked the director to get the camera to go a little closer. It was sort of the good thing to come out of the nightmare," says Simon Parker, a football reporter for the Telegraph and Argus. I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. 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. 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. The Man burns on September 02, 2023. 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. [10] The call was timed at 3:43pm. That duty was not a duty to the Club but a duty to the spectators and other persons in the stand. We sat in the main stand the week before, but we had decided to move on that day," he says. 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. 1908 - Rhoads Opera House fire, Boyertown, Pennsylvania, killed 170. [1] When the association football club was formed, the ground was changed very little and had no covered accommodation. 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. 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. His face was burned and his car, which he had parked outside the ground, was destroyed. ", Hendrie: "We stayed in the pub for hours. They stood outside the headquarters, staring at nothing in particular. Since 1903, when the club was formed, Bradford City Association Football Club had played their home games at the ground. Our world has a varied history full of terrible tragedies, bizarre tales, unexplained events, and extravagant people. "I was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. Bradford City Stadium Fire: The Forgotten Fire Tragedy of 1985 that "Until I arrived home my mum and my brother had no idea whether I was alive or dead. People were wandering around outside the ground in disbelief, reminiscent of an air disaster, at what had happened the day before. Edited by BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko. He started to walk home, unsure of what had happened to his father. Exactly 79 years to the day after the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, another tragic fire occurred in New York City. "I was operated on every other day because I had so many burns and so many areas to work on. "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. 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. No fire extinguishers had been installed over fears of vandalism and less than four minutes after the fire was reported, the fire had engulfed the whole stand. The game was irrelevant.". It was also a catalyst for the substantial redevelopment and modernisation of many British football grounds within the following thirty years. It was the brainchild of Bradford City fan Lloyd Spencer with all profits going to the Bradford Royal Infirmary Burns Unit.[43]. Fire disaster at football match (Bradford City stadium fire) [19] One fan put his jumper over a fellow supporter's head to extinguish flames. We were sat in our football kit, we didn't know what to do. 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. The inquiry into the disaster, chaired by Sir Oliver Popplewell and known as the Popplewell Inquiry,[25] led to the introduction of new legislation to improve safety at the UK's football grounds. 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. Burning Man.NYC. Everybody in the city was devastated, but there was an amazing number of volunteers. [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. A minute later he saw a small plume of smoke so he poured his coffee on it and so did his son. One elderly man started to walk across the pitch with his clothes and face ablaze. Fifty-six people were killed, 265 were injured and thousands bore witness to the worst fire disaster in the history of English football. "[16] At the front of the stand, men threw children over the wall to help them escape. My hands suffered the most because they were exposed the most. Bradford city council officials, off-duty policemen and guests from Bradford 's twin town, Munchengladbach, were there to celebrate. "A lot of investigative work had been done by the police when I got there. "We couldn't run back down the tunnel. " Burning Man," " Burning Man Project," " Black Rock City ", and . It made me realise life is too short and I'm a happier person for it.". I had to put my jumper over his hair to put the blaze out. "For the first minute people were laughing and joking, it wasn't anything serious. 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. The stand slopes downwards from the South Parade. It seemed to put it out. Saturday began for the fans in a carnival atmosphere at Bradford 's Valley Parade ground a short walk from the city centre. In March 1985 the club's plans became more apparent when it took delivery of steel for a new roof. We wanted to record the trophy presentation. "The referee blew his whistle to stop the game and told us to get back to the dressing room.". Bradford City were supposed to be celebrating on 11 May 1985. Your brain tells you, you are not going anywhere. 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 chairman of the football club, Mr Stafford Heginbotham, was near to tears as he explained what had happened. As we move ahead on the 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, sustainability projects are taking center stage. Club coach Terry Yorath incurred minor injuries while taking part in the rescue. The mood before the match on the 11 May 1985 against Lincoln City was one of jubilation. So I decided to give it that next push. "[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. I asked the director to get the camera to go a little closer. "If we were fed a lie about it being an accident, then we will be educated. 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. And all you could smell was burning.". It wasn't just something that happened in the past.". The Bradford City disaster took place on Saturday May 11, 1985 when a flash fire occurred at the Valley Parade stadium in Bradford, England. I don't see that. There has been reports of people lighting paper under the seats, and it was important that as many fans as possible who were in the stand or at the Kop end contacted the police. It was an awful thing to watch.". The blaze quickly engulfed the stand as Bradford played Lincoln City and claimed the lives of 59 people on May 11, 1985. "How quickly the fire spread is difficult to convey to people.". As the blaze spread, the wooden stands and roofcovered with layers of highly flammable bituminous roofing feltquickly went ablaze. Helm: "There was a throw-in in front of the stand where the fire started - something caught my eye. Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire - HISTORY But many, including Harrison, believe it could unnecessarily reopen wounds if it does happen. "I parked my van outside because I started making enough money painting as I was in construction. Sign up and stay up to date with our daily newsletter. The firemen who arrived there were met by a wall of flame and dense black smoke. [53], In 1986, a year after the disaster, Yorkshire Television aired a documentary presented by John Helm entitled Bradford City A Year of Healing. Listen to Valley Parade: Bradford City Fire Remembered on BBC Radio Leeds (18:00 BST) and BBC Radio 5 live (21:00 BST). More than 250 others were injured in one of the biggest disasters at a British football ground. Original television coverage of the fire, as caught by cameras covering the match. The wooden roof that burned was scheduled to be replaced by a steel roof later that same . Four police officers, constables David Britton and John Richard Ingham and chief inspectors Charles Frederick Mawson and Terence Michael Slocombe, and two spectators, Richard Gough and David Hustler, were awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal for their actions. "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. We had to run up the stairs, through the office doors and out on to the street. People had walked through turnstiles and along a wooden corridor before descending the steps into their seats. We, and the world, need Burning Man and Black Rock City more than ever. "[37], Fletcher subsequently published a book in 2015, Fifty-Six: The Story of the Bradford Fire which revealed a history of fires at businesses owned by the Bradford City chairman Stafford Heginbotham. Some had been crushed as they tried to crawl under turnstiles to escape. Bradford City stadium fire: The untold stories of the 1985 fire 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. Lincoln City suffered two successive relegations, first to the Fourth Division in 1986, and again in 1987, becoming the first team to be automatically relegated from the Football League itself. Someone came in and shouted: 'Get out, get out there's a fire'. [10][16] More than 265 supporters were injured. Samuel Firth, a founder of the supporters' club, was the oldest victim at 86; four 11-year-old boys were the youngest. Fifty-six people died. "All you could see was black cloud. [11], The fire escalated very rapidly, and flames became visible; police started to evacuate the stand. Some of the dead were found at the bottom of these steps. 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. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. [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. "Many people still don't want to talk about the disaster. Within five minutes the whole stand was engulfed in flames. 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. Fletcher has taken facts and presented them in such a way that it should make it moralistically impossible for this incident not to be looked at again. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. The Popplewell Inquiry found that a discarded cigarette and an accumulation of litter beneath the stand were to blame. It was unprecedented.". He was asked if precautions would have been adequate had the club been in the Second Division. The 1985 Bradford City Stadium fire remembered - IFSEC Global [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. Bradford City Stadium Fire - Saturday 11th May 1985 [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. Wildman: "I was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. 56 people dead. 2022 DECOMPRESSION WAS DREAMY . It spelt out 'thank you fans'. The Bradford City stadium fire was the worst fire disaster in the history of football.. But all the people being treated, we formed a family, a bond.". "[28], West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council was found to have failed in its duty under the Fire Precautions Act 1971. I've never seen anything like it. [4], Although there had been some changes to other parts of the ground, the main stand remained unaltered by 1985.

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