[News] Bradford City fire: Valley Parade memorial held online

[neilbard]

Bradford City were playing Lincoln City at Valley Parade when the fire killed 54 Bradford fans and two Lincoln supporters on 11 May 1985.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-52615281

Shocking.

 

[Perfidious Albion]

35 years ago today... ( can it really be that long! )
I can remember listening to the football commentaries on Radio 5 . They were there as the last day of the season. At first it seemed a small problem but quickly turned to a tragedy,
56 dead, over 250 injured ...All for watching football.
I read that the club had been warned about potential dangers of the stand but nothing had been done.
RIP 56 times over....

 

[darkwolf666]

A horrible horrible day, I remember watching that unfold on TV, truly horrendous scenes.

Some people crave for a return to the old days, this acts as a stark reminder as to how bad some old stadia were...

 

[Bry Nylon]

That fire was just one of at least nine fires at businesses owned by or associated with the club’s then chairman, Stafford Heginbotham. There had been at least eight other fires at business premises either owned by, or connected to, Stafford Heginbotham, Bradford’s then-chairman, in the previous 18 years, resulting resulting in insurance payouts of around £27m in today’s terms.


1) May 1967: fire in Stafford Heginbotham’s factory at three-storey Cutler Heights Lane, Bradford
2) April 1968: fire at Genefoam Ltd, managing director Stafford Heginbotham, Cutler Heights Lane
3) August 1970: store-room explosion at Matgoods, founded by Heginbotham, in Wyke, Bradford
4) December 1971: tenant fire at Castle Mills building, Cleckheaton, owned by Heginbotham
5) August 1977: fire at Yorkshire Knitting Mills, in Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills building, Bradford
6) December 1977: fire at four-story Coronet Marketing factory, Leeds Road, Bradford. Coronet Marketing a subsidiary of Tebro Toys, owned by Heginbotham
7) November 1977: fire with toxic fumes at Douglas Mills factory
8) June 1981: fire in plastics factory at Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/apr/15/bradford-fire-stafford-heginbotham-martin-fletcher

 

[blue-shifted]

That fire was just one of at least nine fires at businesses owned by or associated with the club’s then chairman, Stafford Heginbotham. There had been at least eight other fires at business premises either owned by, or connected to, Stafford Heginbotham, Bradford’s then-chairman, in the previous 18 years, resulting resulting in insurance payouts of around £27m in today’s terms.


1) May 1967: fire in Stafford Heginbotham’s factory at three-storey Cutler Heights Lane, Bradford
2) April 1968: fire at Genefoam Ltd, managing director Stafford Heginbotham, Cutler Heights Lane
3) August 1970: store-room explosion at Matgoods, founded by Heginbotham, in Wyke, Bradford
4) December 1971: tenant fire at Castle Mills building, Cleckheaton, owned by Heginbotham
5) August 1977: fire at Yorkshire Knitting Mills, in Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills building, Bradford
6) December 1977: fire at four-story Coronet Marketing factory, Leeds Road, Bradford. Coronet Marketing a subsidiary of Tebro Toys, owned by Heginbotham
7) November 1977: fire with toxic fumes at Douglas Mills factory
8) June 1981: fire in plastics factory at Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/apr/15/bradford-fire-stafford-heginbotham-martin-fletcher

How unlucky can one man be?

Rest in peace to our brothers from Bradford who died on that horrific day

 

[Swansman]

That fire was just one of at least nine fires at businesses owned by or associated with the club’s then chairman, Stafford Heginbotham. There had been at least eight other fires at business premises either owned by, or connected to, Stafford Heginbotham, Bradford’s then-chairman, in the previous 18 years, resulting resulting in insurance payouts of around £27m in today’s terms.


1) May 1967: fire in Stafford Heginbotham’s factory at three-storey Cutler Heights Lane, Bradford
2) April 1968: fire at Genefoam Ltd, managing director Stafford Heginbotham, Cutler Heights Lane
3) August 1970: store-room explosion at Matgoods, founded by Heginbotham, in Wyke, Bradford
4) December 1971: tenant fire at Castle Mills building, Cleckheaton, owned by Heginbotham
5) August 1977: fire at Yorkshire Knitting Mills, in Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills building, Bradford
6) December 1977: fire at four-story Coronet Marketing factory, Leeds Road, Bradford. Coronet Marketing a subsidiary of Tebro Toys, owned by Heginbotham
7) November 1977: fire with toxic fumes at Douglas Mills factory
8) June 1981: fire in plastics factory at Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills

source: 1) May 1967: fire in Stafford Heginbotham’s factory at three-storey Cutler Heights Lane, Bradford
2) April 1968: fire at Genefoam Ltd, managing director Stafford Heginbotham, Cutler Heights Lane
3) August 1970: store-room explosion at Matgoods, founded by Heginbotham, in Wyke, Bradford
4) December 1971: tenant fire at Castle Mills building, Cleckheaton, owned by Heginbotham
5) August 1977: fire at Yorkshire Knitting Mills, in Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills building, Bradford
6) December 1977: fire at four-story Coronet Marketing factory, Leeds Road, Bradford. Coronet Marketing a subsidiary of Tebro Toys, owned by Heginbotham
7) November 1977: fire with toxic fumes at Douglas Mills factory
8) June 1981: fire in plastics factory at Heginbotham-owned Douglas Mills

Yes. And regarding the stand that burned down that day was to be demolished the same summer with a new one of steel replacing it, at a cost of £1,2m (todays value). Instead, Bradford got £7m (also todays value) in insurance money.

Heginbotham had a sign in his office that said "There are three types of people – those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who wonder what happened".

Sure, the investigation didnt show any proof of arson, but it was also by all accounts half-assedly done in like three days. Considering the circumstances and the history of this asshole... its hard not to get suspicious, especially when you read Martin Fletchers book about it.

 

[Official Old Man]

Quote from the commentary-
"They came to watch the football. This is human tragedy"
A small fire can be seen at 15:44. Within just four minutes the entire stand is alight. Could you have got out of the Goldstone West Stand in that time?
Luckily no fencing or the death toll would have been thousands (2500 in a full stand).
My thoughts will always be with those we lost that sad day.

 

[Poojah]

If you look on the memorial, there are four names from the same family - the Fletcher's. I was good friends with a lad from that family at school; he lost his dad, his granddad, his uncle and his cousin in that fire. He was only a few months old at the time - absolutely galling for the family. A massive tragedy for all concerned, RIP.

 

[atfc village]

The one tragedy of the 80's that doesn't get the coverage of others . RIP the 54 Bradford and 2 Lincoln . Always made a point of stopping at the memorial at Bradford every time i've been.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Yes. And regarding the stand that burned down that day was to be demolished the same summer with a new one of steel replacing it, at a cost of £1,2m (todays value). Instead, Bradford got £7m (also todays value) in insurance money.

Heginbotham had a sign in his office that said "There are three types of people – those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who wonder what happened".

Sure, the investigation didnt show any proof of arson, but it was also by all accounts half-assedly done in like three days. Considering the circumstances and the history of this asshole... its hard not to get suspicious, especially when you read Martin Fletchers book about it.

Police identify Australian man whose dropped cigarette started the Bradford City fire
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uk...cigarette-started-the-Bradford-City-fire.html

 

[Munkfish]

Guy I work with was there. I wish I hadn't started the conversation today. Poor people who were there that day.

 

[Swansman]

Police identify Australian man whose dropped cigarette started the Bradford City fire
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uk...cigarette-started-the-Bradford-City-fire.html

About that article...

"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.[59] 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.[60] 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. He is quoted as saying: "I don't believe the statement of retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer at all. I don't know where Falconer is getting this cock-and-bull story from… the inaccuracies in this report [documentary] are dumbfounding."[61]

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'. 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."[62]"

(from Wikipedia)

 

[Guy Fawkes]

A horrible horrible day, I remember watching that unfold on TV, truly horrendous scenes.

Some people crave for a return to the old days, this acts as a stark reminder as to how bad some old stadia were...

And also how poor attitudes were at the time towards the health and safety of fans (the authorities were more focused on hooliganism instead - also see Hillsborough)

You certainly wouldn't find padlocked exits at any event with a large crowd any more and i doubt rubbish being allowed to pile up under the wooden stand in the way it had would still be acceptable when it came to issuing safety certificates

It should never take a disaster like this (or at Hillsborough) to shift the authorities focus back onto making sure that fans can attend games and be able to return home safely afterwards as it should never have been moved away from that in the first place. RIP the 56

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

I remember very well watching it on the TV. It was just horrible. Awful, frightening. All so quick. I'm sure a good many if us had been in similar stands.