"It made me realise life is too short." [17], One witness saw paper or debris on fire, about nine inches (230mm) below the floor boards. "But the feeling here is that it is hard to believe that someone would purposefully start a fire. Some of the dead were found at the bottom of these steps. There was some kind of disturbance near the edge of a block of seats in the G section of the main stand. There were many cases of heroism, with more than 50 people later receiving police awards or commendations for bravery. Fire kills 50 at soccer stadium - HISTORY 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. There was hardly anything left of him.'. The Bradford way was keep it to ourselves - it worked collectively that we did that. It was the brainchild of Bradford City fan Lloyd Spencer with all profits going to the Bradford Royal Infirmary Burns Unit.[43]. Yet many of those with terrible memories of the tragedy also take heart in the compassion born out of the devastation. Last edited: May 11, 2021 May 11, 2019 #2 JohnnyKills Full Member Joined Jan 8, 2016 Messages 6,902 Yeah footage is horrendous isn't it. 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. Parents and children were laughing and joking with the police as the preliminaries to the game began. At Valley Parade there are now two memorials. 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. 05/12/15 AT 9:58 AM BST Crowds on the pitch at the Valley Parade stadium after a stand caught fire Getty Images Police have revealed the identity of the man who they believe was responsible. "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". 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. 2022 DECOMPRESSION WAS DREAMY . We, and the world, need Burning Man and Black Rock City more than ever. 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. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 13:41. [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. The Bradford Burns Unit was set up by Professor David Sharpe after he received many of the victims following the fire. [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. [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. 'The smoke was very, very dense. 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. It's a nice little business and it's something positive that came out of a tragedy. [10][11], Bradford's Telegraph & Argus newspaper published a souvenir issue for 11 May, entitled, "Spit and Polish for the Parade Ground". The heat was so intense it caused car windows to shatter in the street. Original television coverage of the fire, as caught by cameras covering the match. [29] The Health and Safety Executive who were also part of the legal action were found to be non-liable. Funnily enough I was thinking 'I'm going to miss the second half at this rate'. "How quickly the fire spread is difficult to convey to people.". Bradford fire 11.5.1985.mpg - video Dailymotion I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. After 40 minutes of the first half, fans had begun to complain about the drab match and the 0-0 score. Bradford City stadium fire disaster: In memory of the 56 victims Instead it turned into a day of appalling tragedy. 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. By the time the fire brigade arrived they were faced with huge flames and dense smoke. 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. After the fire, Bradford City also announced they would thereafter play with a black trim on their shirt sleeves as a permanent memorial to those who had died. "That was the legacy of the tragedy. The Popplewell Inquiry found that the club had been warned about the fire risk that the rubbish accumulating under the stand had posed. He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. The match was recorded by Yorkshire Television for their regional edition of the ITV Sunday afternoon football show The Big Match. 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. 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. They were donated by Bradford's twin city of Hamm, Germany, and are situated in front of Bradford City Hall in both locations. All that was left of the main stand were rows of bare steel and stone, with blackened timbers hanging from the few remaining roof supports. The fire brigade arrived at the ground four minutes after they were initially alerted. Town began to paint two years ago, first of the old Bradford Park Avenue ground, before moving onto other stadiums. Bradford City continues to support the burns unit at the University of Bradford as its official charity. A fire at a third division match between Bradford City and Lincoln City killed 56, including 11 children, and injured hundreds more. Mike Harrison, the editor of the Bradford City Football Club fanzine The City Gent, was there on the day. Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. It was sort of the good thing to come out of the nightmare," says Simon Parker, a football reporter for the Telegraph and Argus. My hands suffered the most because they were exposed the most. 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. 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. People pushed him to the ground and tried to smother the flames. While Valley Parade was re-developed, Bradford City played games at various neighbouring grounds: Elland Road, Leeds; Leeds Road, Huddersfield; and Odsal Stadium, Bradford. Although there was no perimeter fencing, such as led to the devastating crush at Hillsborough, locked turnstiles meant that many fans who tried to escape by that means were killed or seriously injured. 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. It was to be our day,' he said. Bradford fan David Pendleton, then aged 21 and stood in the main stand: "For the first minute people were laughing and joking, it wasn't anything serious. Bradford City fire was started by a tourist who dropped a cigarette ', Sports reporters covering the game also spoke of the disaster. The smoke was choking. "I looked up and saw the flames. All you could hear was sirens and screams. "If we were fed a lie about it being an accident, then we will be educated. The Bradford City stadium fire was the worst fire disaster in the history of football.. Brooklyn fire: Lumber storage warehouse in Williamsburg goes up in 24 Bradford City A.F.C. 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. "It's therapeutic and I've met so many people through doing this." [22], Immediately after the fire, Sharpe planned and treated the injuries of over 200 individuals, with many experimental treatments being used. [31] In 1988, the first compensation payments were made to survivors of the fire, with over 40 people receiving up to 40,000 each. 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. 48,785 Location Lake Jonathan Creek The footage never gets any less shocking. Now they will begin another inquiry, into the cause of the Bradford fire. Copyright 2023 IBTimes UK. The game was irrelevant.". The only fire extinguishers in the ground were in the clubroom, which is also in the main stand. "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. Fans in the next stand (the "Bradford End") pulled down the fence separating them from the pitch. [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. [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. We had not been told anything.". Christmas Day is supposed to be happy and pleasant, a time to gather with loved ones for a chill and relaxing celebration. Popplewell's report was nowhere close to the quality of Lord Justice Taylor's report after Hillsborough, and since reading it as an adult I have always been very disappointed in it and considered it a poor piece of work. Warning: Some readers may find parts of this content distressing. The Man burns on September 02, 2023. [6] 1908 - Parker Building, New York City, January 10. The Bradford City stadium fire : r/MorbidReality "For the first minute people were laughing and joking, it wasn't anything serious. [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. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Revealed: former Bradford chairman linked to at least eight fires before Valley Parade disaster, Martin Fletcher: Maybe the reason I am here is to finally reveal the truth, TheStory of the Bradford Fire: could any man really be as unlucky as Stafford Heginbotham?. [47] Scriptwriters of the play spent hours with the survivors and victims families. There was a bit of paper on fire, but it was so small.". Radiated heat from the burning roof of the stand set fire to the clothing of fans trapped underneath. Within a few hours of the blaze starting, it was established that 56 people had been killed, many as a result of smoke inhalation, although some of them had survived until reaching hospital.[11]. Stories From 11 May. The blaze quickly engulfed the stand as Bradford played Lincoln City and claimed the lives of 59 people on May 11, 1985. I've never seen anything like it. 1985: Fans killed in Bradford stadium fire. "It is unbelievable how quickly the fire took hold. The 4-alarm fire started in a one-story lumber storage building and spread to an adjacent building . 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. Then the flames and smoke were all over the place.'. Bradford City stadium fire. A football match in Bradford UK ends I saw a group of people around the smoke laughing. On 11 May 1985 a blaze ripped through Bradford City stadium's wooden structure in minutes as the club played Lincoln City in an end of season match. People who had escaped the fire then tried to assist their fellow supporters. Our world has a varied history full of terrible tragedies, bizarre tales, unexplained events, and extravagant people. Many who had walked out of the fire stood on the pitch looking back in horror as the flames destroyed the stand. 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. 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. It transpired that the wooden stand had already been condemned and was set to be demolished just two days after the tragedy. "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. " Burning Man," " Burning Man Project," " Black Rock City ", and . "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. Police removed the last body from the ground at 4 am yesterday, working under arc lights. This day was for them. At the time, however, Harrison says, Bradford just wanted to move on. It detailed the safety work which would be carried out at Valley Parade as a result of the club's promotion, admitting the ground was "inadequate in so many ways for modern requirements". One letter from the council said the problems "should be rectified as soon as possible"; a second said: "A carelessly discarded cigarette could give rise to a fire risk." The 51 other bodies of children, women and men were so badly burned that identification will take many days. 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. 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.. [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. An inquiry launched in the aftermath of the disaster led to legislation to improve safety at football grounds. "Could any man really be as unlucky as Heginbotham had been?" We didn't know how serious it was.". Like you, we're already preparing for Black Rock City to rise again. It wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". The fire destroyed the main stand completely and left only burned seats, lamps and metal fences remaining. "[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 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. It was clear from what the Chief Fire Officer for West Yorkshire, Mr Graham Karran, said yesterday that the ground was far from safe. Bradford fire: the horrors and the silence that had to be broken Daniel Taylor The policewoman assigned to the grieving Fletchers gets goosebumps when she looks back to 30 years ago. [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. Watch Missed Warnings on BBC One in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire at 22:45 BST on Tuesday, 12 May. Bradford City FC stadium fire | 11th May 1985 | Fire Brigades Union However, when Bradford City won promotion to the highest level of English football, Division One, in 1908, club officials sanctioned an upgrade programme. I ran to the stand and tried to help people escape. Videos, gifs, or aftermath photos of machinery, structures, or devices The fire brigade said that when heat builds up so quickly it can cause flames to move much quicker than people can walk. [11], The fire escalated very rapidly, and flames became visible; police started to evacuate the stand. Thirty years on, the majority of survivors still find it too difficult to talk about what happened at the Valley Parade on 11 May 1985. [] I still have terrible memories of the day, but it is the humanity of those that helped us that I reflect on."[41]. Burning Man - Wikipedia 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. They were not able to use water on the stand immediately because this would have hampered attempts to rescue people being dragged by the police and friends from the stand. They were immediately promoted back to the Football League in 1988, and survived for 23 years before being relegated again in 2011. "[28], West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council was found to have failed in its duty under the Fire Precautions Act 1971. I rolled over on my head, jumped up and ran off.". That duty was not a duty to the Club but a duty to the spectators and other persons in the stand. "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. 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. [26], In July 1985, an inquest was held into the deaths; at the hearings the coroner James Turnbull recommended a death by misadventure outcome, with which the jury agreed. [10] One eyewitness, Geoffrey Mitchell, told the BBC: "It spread like a flash. 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. 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. 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. ", 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. [2] By 1911, his work was completed. Bradford City Stadium Fire: The Forgotten Fire Tragedy of 1985 that The Bradford city stadium fire. 56 people died when a - reddit The heat inside the stand literally ignited people where they stood. Bradford City Stadium Fire - 36 years ago today | RedCafe.net [10] The call was timed at 3:43pm. Like all areas of forensic investigations, it has come on leaps and bounds. The blaze, at the Happy Land Social Club in the Bronx, killed 87 people, the . 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. [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. 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]. Many were burnt to death at the turnstiles gates, which had also been locked after the match had begun. 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. Today, locals continue to raise money for the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit in memory of the victims of the fire. Fletcher has been the only survivor to publicly challenge the inquiry's findings. 56 dead and hundreds more injured. The man in charge of investigating the fire, Detective Superintendent Kevin Cooper was at the game. 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. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. One woman was seen running around the ground with no skin on her arms and face. The stand had already been condemned, and the demolition teams were due to start work two days later. The fire started five minutes before half-time during the match on 11 May between Bradford and Lincoln City. "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. Fifty-six people died. Sir Oliver Popplewell, the High Court judge who led the Valley Parade inquiry in 1985: "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. 1908 - Collinwood school fire, in Collinwood, Ohio (soon absorbed by Cleveland ), on March 4, killed 175. It took the firemen four minutes to arrive at the ground but the speed of the fire was such that the blaze also took only four minutes to grip the entire stand. Some had been crushed as they tried to crawl under turnstiles to escape. "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. ", On 26 January 2016, the IPCC declined calls for an investigation and published its full response online. [1] When the association football club was formed, the ground was changed very little and had no covered accommodation. I was there in hospital for eight weeks - it felt like a lifetime. Hillsborough looms the largest in our collective consciousness, but there were also the many deaths that occurred at Heysel Stadium in 1985, as well as the Bradford City stadium fire that same year. "I was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. BurningMan.NYC will announce the dates and process for the 2023 grant cycle on this site & all BurningMan.NYC social channels in early Spring. ', 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. Read about our approach to external linking. [11], The disaster also had a long-lasting effect on the fans. ", "If the inquiry is opened again, we will await to see what evidence there is to prove is wasn't an accident," he says. 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. 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.