As we move ahead on the 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, sustainability projects are taking center stage. [10][16] More than 265 supporters were injured. We couldn't breathe. 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. We went there to win the last game in front of a home crowd. 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]. "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. You could hardly breathe. 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." However as the game against Lincoln progressed, a fire began just before half-time in the stand that ran alongside the pitch. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 13:41. Come celebrate the beastly realm and our place in it and with it, an even more radically inclusive and sustainable city and global community in 2023: ANIMALIA! Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. ", ITV football commentator John Helm, who provided live commentary of the unfolding disaster across the nation: "We wouldn't normally have covered that game - no question about 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. Coach Terry Yorath described the events as "the worst day in my life. [10] Of those who died, 11 were under-18 and 23 were aged 65 or over,[20] and the oldest victim was the club's former chairman, Sam Firth, aged 86. 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. His face was burned and his car, which he had parked outside the ground, was destroyed. Edited by BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko. It made me realise life is too short and I'm a happier person for it.". Valley Parade re-opened on 14 December 1986, when Bradford City beat an England XI 21 in a friendly. At Valley Parade there are now two memorials. It has a black marble fascia on which the names and ages of those that died are inscribed in gold, and a black marble platform on which people can leave flowers and mementos. Wealso use analytics cookies that don't track usersto help us improve it. "Several minutes before half-time I saw there was a wee bit of bother. 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. 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 . The game was irrelevant.". Original television coverage of the fire, as caught by cameras covering the match. He had to undergo counselling and was unable to go to another game for several years. Bradford City stadium fire: Remembering the 56 who died at Valley - IBT [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. People were clambering over the wall on to the ground with their clothes and hair on fire. Town began to paint two years ago, first of the old Bradford Park Avenue ground, before moving onto other stadiums. Now a new film claims an Australian was responsible for the worst . "I looked up and saw the flames. 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. "[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 wasn't until later on when assistant manager Terry Yorath came in and said: 'It's not good.'". That's when everybody else had the same thought. Bits of my arms, bits of my legs, part of my face, part of my scalp. Only one person had been positively identified by police by early last night. Keep an eye out as you ride your bike through the city you will see a new solar-powered Man, fewer gas and . [10][11], Bradford's Telegraph & Argus newspaper published a souvenir issue for 11 May, entitled, "Spit and Polish for the Parade Ground". Otherwise, I would not have been able to get out. Our world has a varied history full of terrible tragedies, bizarre tales, unexplained events, and extravagant people. Some had been crushed as they tried to crawl under turnstiles to escape. He is quoted as saying: "I don't believe the statement of retired Detective Inspector Raymond Falconer at all. The entrances to the stand were all at the rear and were higher than the rest of the ground. One family was in tears, the mother shaking. Police officers also assisted in the rescue attempts. It's a nice little business and it's something positive that came out of a tragedy. Instead it turned into a day of appalling tragedy. "[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. 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. Your brain tells you, you are not going anywhere. All existing grandstands deemed fire risks were faced with immediate closure. The main stand at Bradford was not surrounded by fencing, and therefore most of the spectators in it could escape onto the pitch if they had been penned in then the death toll would inevitably have been in the hundreds if not the thousands. "Some of the local residents opened their houses so people could make phone calls. Bradford City continues to support the burns unit at the University of Bradford as its official charity. 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. 56 dead and hundreds more injured. Spreading with almost unbelievable speed, a small fire under a wooden. The Bradford Burns Unit was set up by Professor David Sharpe after he received many of the victims following the fire. "It wasn't covering anything up, it wasn't avoiding the truth of what happened, everyone knows what happened, everyone knows it shouldn't have happened. 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. Other parents whose children had not arrived home on Saturday called at the police station or sat in cars outside, waiting for news. 1.7M subscribers in the CatastrophicFailure community. It is not thought that there was any crowd trouble in this section but one theory the police are investigating is that a flare or smoke-bomb was thrown or was accidentally dropped. I'd seen the film on the Saturday but the bleakness of the stadium burnt out, and the gloom that afflicted everybody, was dreadful. "Then we ran out in our tracksuits each holding a massive card with a letter. I dread to imagine how many more could have died if the wind had been blowing in the direction of the pitch, instead of away from it. [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. I do not include the people currently running the club, who have always displayed a great, sensitive duty to the memory of those who died. 'I have to tell you that the fire was so intense that identifying people is going to be the great problem we have to face.'. [14] It took less than four minutes for the entire stand to be engulfed in flames.[11]. But the sheer density of numbers coupled with the thick, choking smoke made people collapse. The sling is now used internationally in the treatment of burns. The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. The Bradford City stadium fire : r/MorbidReality And all you could smell was burning.". After 40 minutes of the first half, fans had begun to complain about the drab match and the 0-0 score. 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. 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. He asks the reader to make their mind up about whether these fires were a coincidence or not.". We were sat in our football kit, we didn't know what to do. 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. "We stayed in the pub for hours. 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. I rolled over on my head, jumped up and ran off.". Artist Paul Town, who now lives in Baildon, was 15 at the time of the fire. 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. It was an awful thing to watch.". All you could hear was sirens and screams. The fire brigade arrived at the ground four minutes after they were initially alerted. Then flames licked the underside of the seats, which were a combination of wood and plastic. Others ran forward to try to clamber over a fence and a small wall on to the pitch. 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.. People who had escaped the fire then tried to assist their fellow supporters. "That was the legacy of the tragedy. Bradford City stadium fire: The untold stories of the 1985 fire that devastated Valley Parade Thirty years after football's 'forgotten tragedy', the truth of what exactly happened when 56. Valley Parade during the early 1990s, after it had been redeveloped following the fire. [8][10] Three men smashed down one door and at least one exit was opened by people outside, which again helped prevent further deaths. "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. 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". The stadium was known for its antiquated design and facilities, which included the wooden roof of the main stand. But many, including Harrison, believe it could unnecessarily reopen wounds if it does happen. It was later established that the blaze was caused by a fan who went to put his cigarette out but dropped it between the floorboards onto a pile of rubbish that had been building up below. And then suddenly, in the space of 120-odd seconds, it really kicked in. More than 200 people were taken to hospital, many with terrible injuries. "How quickly the fire spread is difficult to convey to people.". [10] One eyewitness, Geoffrey Mitchell, told the BBC: "It spread like a flash. 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. It wasn't just something that happened in the past.". The team's coach, Mr Terry Yorath, ran on to the pitch to try to help people away from the stand.
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