Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. Then flames licked the underside of the seats, which were a combination of wood and plastic. At Valley Parade there are now two memorials. 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. Speculation an Australian man started the Bradford City stadium fire in 1985 IT killed 56 people and destroyed an entire stadium. Your brain tells you, you are not going anywhere. Treatment of casualties and Burns Research Unit, Dramatisations, documentaries and published works, West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of accidents and disasters by death toll, List of United Kingdom disasters by death toll, "Hideous images linger after carnage of 'celebration' day", "Caught in Time: Bradford City win the Third Division, 1985", "EXCLUSIVE: Bradford's Valley Parade fire must be remembered like Hillsborough", "History of The Bradford Sling The Bradford Sling", "Bradford City football stadium blaze surgeon honoured", "Research centre to be living memorial to Bradford City FC fire disaster", "The Papers of the Popplewell Inquiry into Crowd Safety at Sports Grounds", "Popplewell Inquiry Bradford City Fire", "Bradford remembered: The unheeded warnings that led to tragedy", Joseph Canley summing up statement from test case court transcripts, Newspaper report from Sport and the Law April 21st 1989, "The Glasgow Herald Google News Archive Search", Los Angeles Times report on Bradford City test case findings, Court transcript from the test case brought by Susan Fletcher and Others against Bradford City and Others, "Bradford fire survivor attacks judge over Hillsborough comments", "The Story of the Bradford Fire: 'could any man really be as unlucky as Stafford Heginbotham? I asked the director to get the camera to go a little closer. 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. Football architect Archibald Leitch was commissioned to carry out the work. Cigarette smoking was also banned at all grounds with wooden stands. 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 firemen who arrived there were met by a wall of flame and dense black smoke. 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." People had walked through turnstiles and along a wooden corridor before descending the steps into their seats. 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. Like you, we're already preparing for Black Rock City to rise again. The fire started five minutes before half-time during the match on 11 May between Bradford and Lincoln City. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. It spelt out 'thank you fans'. [8][10] Three men smashed down one door and at least one exit was opened by people outside, which again helped prevent further deaths. 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. That duty was not a duty to the Club but a duty to the spectators and other persons in the stand. There was hardly anything left of him.'. "But the feeling here is that it is hard to believe that someone would purposefully start a fire. However, as there was no real precedent, most Bradfordians accepted that the fire was a terrible piece of misfortune. 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]. [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. "I was in the stand opposite when the fire broke out. Mr Delahunte was screaming into his microphone describing the scene until it became impossible to continue broadcasting. [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. Your brain tells you, you are not going anywhere. "Many people still don't want to talk about the disaster. Read about our approach to external linking. The inquiry had found that the club had been warned that the accumulation of rubbish beneath the stands was a fire risk. 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. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 13:41. [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. Mike Harrison, the editor of the Bradford City Football Club fanzine The City Gent, was there on the day. The Bradford Disaster Appeal fund, set up within 48hours of the disaster, eventually raised over 3.5million (11.3million today). "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". 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. "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. It is repeated across the country on BBC Two at 23:20 BST on Wednesday, 13 May. An ancient wooden spectator stand and a dropped cigarette - the ingredients for one of Britain's deadliest soccer tragedies. Copyright , Fire Brigades Union, 2023. 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.. 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. The fire brigade said that when heat builds up so quickly it can cause flames to move much quicker than people can walk. [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. ", "There was a throw-in in front of the stand where the fire started - something caught my eye. My hands suffered the most because they were exposed the most. By the time the fire brigade arrived they were faced with huge flames and dense smoke. Another player went into the office space to ensure there was nobody there. My hands suffered the most because they were exposed the most. [] I still have terrible memories of the day, but it is the humanity of those that helped us that I reflect on."[41]. And the black and twisted skeleton of the burnt stand stood out in the night. A fire at a third division match between Bradford City and Lincoln City killed 56, including 11 children, and injured hundreds more. After Hillsborough, the Bradford City FC stadium fire was the second worst sporting tragedy in England, leaving 56 dead and at least 265 injured. Stadium disasters have blighted the world of sport throughout modern history. We sat in the main stand the week before, but we had decided to move on that day," he says. 'This was a dreadful afternoon. [48] Profits from the play's run at The Edinburgh Fringe were donated to the Bradford Burns Unit. He had to undergo counselling and was unable to go to another game for several years. "[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]. It was to be our day,' he said. An inquiry launched in the aftermath of the disaster led to legislation to improve safety at football grounds. The heat was so intense it caused car windows to shatter in the street. "All you could see was black cloud. 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. 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. 1985: Fans killed in Bradford stadium fire. [39], The club's chairman, Stafford Heginbotham, said: "It was to be our day". Fletcher has been the only survivor to publicly challenge the inquiry's findings. There were many cases of heroism, with more than 50 people later receiving police awards or commendations for bravery. Some days I had two operations in a day. As we move ahead on the 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, sustainability projects are taking center stage. [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. I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. [10] Bradford City's coach Terry Yorath, whose family was in the stand,[19] ran onto the pitch to help evacuate people. 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. While Valley Parade was re-developed, Bradford City played games at various neighbouring grounds: Elland Road, Leeds; Leeds Road, Huddersfield; and Odsal Stadium, Bradford. [56], On 17 April 2015, retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer, in a report by the Bradford Telegraph and Argus, said the police were aware of an Australian man who admitted to starting the fire. ", On 26 January 2016, the IPCC declined calls for an investigation and published its full response online. The Man burns on September 02, 2023. "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. As the blaze spread, the wooden stands and roofcovered with layers of highly flammable bituminous roofing feltquickly went ablaze. Eight fires in the 18 years before the Bradford City fire were identified, many catastrophic and leading to large insurance payouts. The blame was through neglect, they didn't have the money to maintain the stand. "For the first minute people were laughing and joking, it wasn't anything serious. "How quickly the fire spread is difficult to convey to people.". After Hillsborough, the Bradford City FC stadium fire was the second worst sporting tragedy in England, leaving 56 dead and at least 265 injured. The smoke was choking. "It is unbelievable how quickly the fire took hold. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. Some of those who died were still sitting upright in their seats, covered by remnants of tarpaulin that had fallen from the roof. "The fire still has a big impact on people," Parker says. When Town reached the Midland Road side of the pitch, he was faced with horrific scenes of the injured being treated and comforted by ambulance crews, fans and players. 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. They were donated by Bradford's twin city of Hamm, Germany, and are situated in front of Bradford City Hall in both locations. The fact is that no one person was concerned with the safety of the premises. Burning Man is an event focused on community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance held annually in the western United States. Bradford council introduced its emergency plans procedure yesterday to give aid to many families affected by the disaster. Mr Tony Delahunte, who was presenting a programme from the ground for Pennine Radio, said 'The fire seemed to me to start with a smoke bomb. [10] One eyewitness, Geoffrey Mitchell, told the BBC: "It spread like a flash. At the time of the disaster, many stadiums had perimeter fencing between the stands and the pitch to prevent incidents of football hooliganism particularly pitch invasions which were rife during the 1980s. "[59], Raymond Falconer's reliability had previously been questioned by Daniel Taylor in The Guardian who stated that: "The Bradford Telegraph and Argus described him as a 'top detective'. There is no evidence in the book, he is just pointing out there are some coincidences. Stories From 11 May. Soon they were all running for their lives. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. Coach Terry Yorath described the events as "the worst day in my life. The 51 other bodies of children, women and men were so badly burned that identification will take many days. By the time they got back, the whole thing had taken off. [6] 1908 - Parker Building, New York City, January 10. Most of the exits at the back were locked or shut and there were no stewards present to open them, but seven were forced open or found open. [2] By 1911, his work was completed. Owing to windy conditions, less than four minutes later the entire wooden stand was engulfed in smoke and fire. [10] The stand seats did not have risers; this had allowed a large accumulation of rubbish and paper waste in the cavity space under the stand, which had not been cleared for many months. One retired mill worker made his way to the pitch, but was walking about on fire from head to foot. 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. 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. [11], The disaster also had a long-lasting effect on the fans. "[16] As spectators began to cascade over the wall separating the stand from the pitch, the linesman on that side of the pitch informed referee Norman Glover, who stopped the game with three minutes remaining before half-time. [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. Interviews conducted by BBC Radio Leeds' Tim Daley. "A disaster is not black and white - it is a mass of factors.". It wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". People were wandering around outside the ground in disbelief, reminiscent of an air disaster, at what had happened the day before. ", IBT UK Morning Brief - Let the best of International News come to you. Most Bradfordians have accepted the fire was a terrible misfortune. But all the people being treated, we formed a family, a bond.". 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. The Bradford way was keep it to ourselves - it worked collectively that we did that. As he received the injured at Bradford Royal Infirmary he was able to call upon 10% of the UK's population of plastic surgeons. Sir Oliver Popplewell, the High Court judge who led the Valley Parade inquiry in 1985: "The scene when I arrived was horrendous. On the recording are Dene Michael (Black Lace), The Chuckle Brothers, Clive Jackson of Dr & The Medics, Owen Paul, Billy Pearce, Billy Shears, Flint Bedrock, Danny Tetley and Rick Wild of The Overlanders. Although I was only 12 at the time, 11 May 1985 is a day. "I remember not being able to watch it, but we couldn't get out. Pendleton: "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 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. Keep an eye out as you ride your bike through the city you will see a new solar-powered Man, fewer gas and . " Burning Man," " Burning Man Project," " Black Rock City ", and . Bits of my arms, bits of my legs, part of my face, part of my scalp. [citation needed] Spectators later spoke of initially feeling their feet becoming warmer; one of them ran to the back of the stand for a fire extinguisher but found none. 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. [10] The call was timed at 3:43pm. [14] It took less than four minutes for the entire stand to be engulfed in flames.[11]. Once we went out it was mayhem, manic, chaotic. "That was the moment that I realised not everybody was going to get out. England won the re-match 64. 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. 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. It remains to be seen whether a new investigation will take place. 'It is the worst day in my life. At the final home match against Barnsley at the end of April, Bradford City fans collected more than 8,000 in a bucket collection. "It is the little things that show how much people are still involved the fire still has a big impact on people. Recommended The untold stories of the 1985 fire Today, locals continue to raise money for the Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit in memory of the victims of the fire. We couldn't breathe. The wooden roof that burned was scheduled to be replaced by a steel roof later that same . Most of those who escaped onto the pitch were saved.[10]. Bits of my arms, bits of my legs, part of my face, part of my scalp. We had not been told anything.". Burning timbers and molten materials fell from the roof onto the crowd and seating below, and dense black smoke enveloped a passageway behind the stand, where many spectators were trying to escape. He is quoted as saying: "I don't believe the statement of retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer at all. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. 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". 56 dead and hundreds more injured. 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. I saw a group of people around the smoke laughing. The scene in there was one of silence and shock. 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. Previous warnings had also been given about a major build-up of litter in the cavity below the seats in the stand. The next day work began on clearing the burnt out shell of the stand, and Justice Popplewell released his findings into the disaster. "Us players must have been in the tunnel for seconds - and I mean seconds. On Saturday 11 May 2002, the 17th anniversary of the disaster, a memorial with the names of those who lost their lives was dedicated at the new entrance to the redeveloped Sunwin stand. He saw smoke coming from a small area of the stand and thought that someone had let off a flare. 1.7M subscribers in the CatastrophicFailure community. The Bradford Burns Unit was set up by Professor David Sharpe after he received many of the victims following the fire. You may notice some big changes in Black Rock City this year. Tarpaulin fell on them and stuck to their clothes and then ignited. Helm: "The scene became progressively horrendous, grotesque, and I was having to describe things you couldn't possibly imagine.". It was a gruesome sight to see bodies still sitting upright in their seats, covered in tarpaulin. Only then do you realise the huge network of people the fire involved. Bradford City had just won the Third Division Championship and a record number of spectators over 11,000 had turned out to see the club presented with its first piece of league silverware in 56 years. 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. Fifty-six people died. 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. More than 250 others were injured in one of the biggest disasters at a British football ground. 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?. The entrances to the stand were all at the rear and were higher than the rest of the ground. By this date the appeal fund set up for survivors had paid out more than 4m with further payouts expected as the effects of physical and mental injury were determined. [8][9] In the crowd were local dignitaries and guests from three of Bradford's twin townsVerviers in Belgium, and Mnchengladbach and Hamm in West Germany. It was clear from what the Chief Fire Officer for West Yorkshire, Mr Graham Karran, said yesterday that the ground was far from safe. We accepted it was an accident, nobody wanted to blame the club because it was the club we wanted to support. I have never had to deal with such a situation before, and this has put the city on its heels.'. This day was for them. Fifty people die in a fire in the grandstand at a soccer stadium in Bradford, England, on May 11, 1985. "It is hard to imagine how Martin and his mother have managed to cope over the last 30 years and we have always respected him," Harrison says. There were no fire extinguishers. People were falling on to each other and screaming. Those are the words of David Pendleton, a survivor of the Bradford City fire disaster, which happened 30 years ago. Now they will begin another inquiry, into the cause of the Bradford fire. Listen to Valley Parade: Bradford City Fire Remembered on BBC Radio Leeds (18:00 BST) and BBC Radio 5 live (21:00 BST). The man in charge of investigating the fire, Detective Superintendent Kevin Cooper was at the game. A few minutes later, he felt a thump on his back from his father, who told him to run. 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. [17], One witness saw paper or debris on fire, about nine inches (230mm) below the floor boards. 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. It slipped through a hole in the floorboard. 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 was dragged on to the pitch and into a line of people, who couldn't do much for themselves and were lying there. Instead it turned into a day of appalling tragedy. I don't know where Falconer is getting this cock-and-bull story from the inaccuracies in this report [documentary] are dumbfounding. Earlier this year, Town gave up working in construction to pursue painting full-time through his business Stadium Portraits. "I parked my van outside because I started making enough money painting as I was in construction. "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. Spreading with almost unbelievable speed, a small fire under a wooden. 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. 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. I was there in hospital for eight weeks - it felt like a lifetime. "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. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. Those are the words of David Pendleton, a survivor of the Bradford City fire disaster, which happened 30 years ago. 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. He appealed to people to be patient while forensic experts identified bodies. Most of the fans who took this escape route were killed or seriously injured. 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]. I remember trying to make sense of what was going on. But I've never spoken to anyone who thought the fire wasn't anything other than a tragic accident. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. Otherwise, I would not have been able to get out. "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.