Previous warnings had also been given about a major . Regional Scout (North): Ray Mathias. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? The Independent Magazine's own investigations, at the National Archive at Kew, bear out the nagging suspicions Fletcher always had. Even if you're in a small town, it's the main focal point," says Ian Ormondroyd. There is a twin memorial sculpture, unveiled on 11 May 1986, which has the names of the dead inscribed on it. We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. William Stacey (72) Regional Scout (South): Chris Finn. 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. The smoke was choking. by tiger76 Fri May 11, 2018 11:31 pm, Post ";s:4:"text";s:3462:" Visit us for exclusive Galen Center Special Events throughout the year! A Gannett Company. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The playing area and stands were very basic but the ground had enough room for 18,000spectators. John Fletcher (34) He later said: "I have never known anything like it, either before, or since. "[33], Central to the test case were two letters sent to Bradford City's Club Secretary by the West Yorkshire Fire Brigade; the second letter dated 18 July 1984 specifically highlighted in full the improvements needed to be actioned at the ground as well as the fire risk at the main stand. He and the children all perished, along with the boys' father. "[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. View James Ormondroyd's profile on LinkedIn, the world's largest professional community. 24 Bradford City A.F.C. As Ian puts it: "Bradford's been on a big rollercoaster over the past ten years and previously. 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 1984/85 season had been one of the most successful in Bradford City's 82-year history. Published on 28/02/2023. Ormondroyd praises 'phenomenal' Bradford Video Unavailable Technical details : A problem was encountered - please try again later Former Bradford and Aston Villa striker Ian Ormondroyd is. But it is Bradford, so they are just lying there, dormant, on the file, along with the question of the nine Heginbotham fires. 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. Since 1903, when the club was formed, Bradford City Association Football Club had played their home games at the ground. It's good that they're all remembered. "But I'd never heard of the Bradford disaster until I auditioned for this," she says. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Gerald Ormondroyd (201296072)? As the blaze spread, the wooden stands and roofcovered with layers of highly flammable bituminous roofing feltquickly went ablaze. talk all about the game and how big this win is for Ten Hag's men. Irene Mcpherson (28) Bradford City continues to support the burns unit at the University of Bradford as its official charity. Ian says that Bantamspast is about much more than just the football: "It's where people come socially. 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]. He was Leicester's record signing in 1992 when he joined from Derby for 350,000. We were sat in our football kit, we didnt know what to do. "Thank you. Thats when everybody else had the same thought. 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". Andrew Fletcher (11) The scene in there was one of silence and shock. For the first-minute people were laughing and joking, it wasnt anything serious, he told the BBC in 2015. In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, celebrate United's League Cup win by listening to Nik (@Rood) and Imran (@Annihilate Now!) A former Bradford City player is asking for people's memories of the club's past - both good and bad. Moira Helen Hodgson (15) The community, principally Bangladeshi, had no links then to the football club and many could not speak English, but they still helped. May 11, 2019 #12 Erebus Full Member. Read more aboutresponsible gambling. "Why is it coming out now? I'm 27 and can't remember seeing it but I know there'll be people on these boards who will and can remind people of what happened on that tragic day. Amanda Jayne Roberts (20) 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. With Bantamspast having been awarded a 50,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Ian says it's now just a matter of people coming forward with their Valley Parade memories. on: May 11, 2012, 10:28:10 am . [2] The main stand was described as a "mammoth structure", but was unusual for its time because of its place on the side of a hill. For the 30th anniversary of the fire a new version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" was recorded at Voltage Studios in Bradford. Still one of the two or three most haunting videos I've ever seen. Frederick Norman Middleton (84) However, as there was no real precedent, most Bradfordians accepted that the fire was a terrible piece of misfortune. Please note: census information may include figures for adjacent streets and postcodes. Something caught my eye, he later explained. Danni Phillips, the young London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art actor who spent hour after hour listening back to the scriptwriters' interviews in preparation for her beautifully observed role in The 56, hails from South Yorkshire, half an hour down the M1 and her father played football for Halifax Town. The speed of the fire was astonishing. ", Ian says he's hoping the Bantamspast project will look at a side of the club which hasn't been revealed before: "This is more about the fans, the people and the ground - even the people who don't come to the ground.". And there are also repeated references to the smell of burning plastic. I don't see that. It's thirty three years since those horrific scenes at valley parade.young Lads dads and grandads young girls and women perished.56.and over 250 injured lets remember and not forget them. The Popplewell Inquiry found that the club had been warned about the fire risk that the rubbish accumulating under the stand had posed. Bradford Fire. This site is part of Newsquest's audited local newspaper network. The blaze broke. 25 years ago and I'm sure, like Hillsborough, it's still fresh in the mind of a . The father whose attempts to make him a Bradford City fan he mischievously tried to resist, especially after the family's relocation to the detached surrounds of East Bridgford in Nottinghamshire turned the boy into a Nottingham Forest fan. [2] By 1911, his work was completed. [8][10] Three men smashed down one door and at least one exit was opened by people outside, which again helped prevent further deaths. The boy Fletcher discovered soon enough how boundlessly and profoundly life-affecting the afternoon would prove to be. Or for a full-blown 91-day inquiry like the one which investigated the 1987 fire at London's King's Cross St Pancras Tube station, though Bradford claimed twice as many lives. The men with no hair feeling the searing pain first; supporters entering hospital with their hands melted to their heads by the asphalt which has leaked from the stadium roof; a fan's trilby hat igniting. She was Hazel Greenwood the mother whose children, 13-year-old Felix and 11-year-old Rupert, had been ushered away from the flames of the stadium fire all those years ago by a traffic warden, seeking to shelter them under his tunic. That was nothing compared with the time it took to interview witnesses in the Hillsborough Inquiry.". We didnt know at this point if anyone had been killed. Part of the service was also held in Urdu and Punjabi as a sign of appreciation to the local ethnically Asian Subcontinental community in Manningham, Bradford and around Valley Parade who had opened their homes to Bradford City supporters to provide assistance in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. Today we remember the 56 fans who tragically lost their lives in the Bradford fire disaster 31 years ago. Some of those back in Bradford have not welcomed his turning over of the stones. But looking back and seeing how much it really affected my dad makes me realise what we went through." This website and associated newspapers adhere to the Independent Press Standards Organisation's Bradford City Community Foundations Unheard Voices project is producing a book and 15-minute film on the residents experiences on that fateful day. by Longside4evr Fri May 11, 2018 11:58 am, Post Steel was to be installed in the roof,[8] and the wooden terracing was to be replaced with concrete. Some of the local residents opened their houses so people could make phone calls, but until I arrived home my mum and my brother had no idea whether I was alive or dead.. This early part of the narrative is so readable that you wonder how Fletcher, a qualified accountant, did not wind up as a writer. 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. Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. RIP. Powered By, Research,Grants and Collaboration Committee, University Institutional Ethics Committee, Buildings and Estate Services Committee (Including Transport), Students counselling and Mentoring Committee, University Institutional Animal Ethics Committee, Literary Arts, Cultural and Important Days Celebrations Committee, Students, Staff . A large fire involving thousands of scrap tyres in Bradford has caused school closures and travel disruption. People smothered him to extinguish the flames, but he later died of his injuries in hospital. 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. That duty was not a duty to the Club but a duty to the spectators and other persons in the stand. Yeah footage is horrendous isn't it. "So yes, it's right that these old questions be asked now. Supporters either ran upwards to the back of the stand or downwards to the pitch to escape. Those who helped are reluctant heroes now. ", Ian Ormondroyd is searching for Valley Parade memories, A Bradford landmark - and a focus for many memories. Gregg Ormondroyd, 31, grew closer to his wife Donna's carer, Anne Robinson Donna collapsed and stopped breathing two years ago and was put in a coma She was brought out of the coma later but has. JavaScript is disabled. [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. by NottsClaret Fri May 11, 2018 2:00 pm, Post Obviously never come to terms with what he saw, and that's 30 years on. Bradford Council has tweeted: "@WYFRS are dealing with a fire within one of the buildings at a school on Thornton View Road BD14. [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. Previous warnings had also been given about a major build-up of litter in the cavity below the seats in the stand. Even if you're in a small town, it's the main focal point," says Ian Ormondroyd. "It seemed that this should at least have been examined," Fletcher says. Community Foundation was set up in 1988 by the PFA. Their initial aim at that time was to promote BCFC in the community by increasing the fan base and awareness of the Club. Original television coverage of the fire, as caught by cameras covering the match. A giant Christian cross, made up of two large charred wooden members[44] that had once been part of the stand, was constructed in front of the middle of the stand and behind the pitchside speaker's platform. As part of Bantamspast, Ian's actually hoping to dig a little deeper to find out just why some people choose to actively avoid Valley Parade completely on matchdays: "Perhaps we'll find out why they don't come. The book and film will be released in March next year with an event at the National Media Museum, followed by a photographic exhibition at the same venue from May. As a result, Bradford-born captain Peter Jackson was presented with the league trophy before the final game of the season with mid-table Lincoln City at Valley Parade on 11 May 1985. [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. Horrific way to die and as ststed some of the most harrowing scenes ever witnessed. The average price for property in BD6 1HR stood at 71,472 in July 2018. "In memory of the 56 people who went to the match on a Saturday and never returned home." ORMONDROYD, Richard John 12 Bingley ORMONDROYD, Robert Ian 12 Bingley POLLARD, Sylvia Lund 69 Bradford PRICE, Herbert 78 Shipley . 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. Whilst the boundary of the original brief was defined by the inner ring road, the University highlighted the significance of buildings just outside the boundary, inclusive of the National Media Museum, Alhambra Theatre and the new . This user liked this post: claretjohn33505. The aim is to preserve these memories for posterity as part of the club's museum at Valley Parade, together with a DVD, podcasts and more. 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 tim_noone Fri May 11, 2018 10:08 pm, Post ', 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. -- A hotel under construction in Bradford is considered a total loss after a fire overnight. "A football club's an integral part of the city you're in. Horrendous. It was his first and last football match. We stayed in the pub for hours. Those are the words of David Pendleton, a survivor of the Bradford City fire disaster, which happened 30 years ago. The largest volume of evidence stored there relates to the Department of the Environment's Fire Research Council the body responsible for providing scientific evidence for Popplewell. Whether they don't feel welcome, for instance. However, the celebratory mood soon turned into one of shock and horror when, at around 3:40 pm, the main stand at Valley Parade became engulfed by flames which reduced the entire wooden structure to cinders. She told the schoolchildren how she had travelled widely in the years after her husband and sons had gone, how that helped sustain her, and how they must think to travel and discover the world too. Only now, in 56: The Story of the Bradford Fire (Bloomsbury, 16.99) has he completed a 15-year quest to challenge history's interpretation of why the fire broke out. [57] 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. `` Bradford 's been on a Saturday and never returned home. been.... Of David Pendleton, a survivor of the stones where people come.! A Bradford landmark - and a focus for many memories note: census information May include figures for adjacent and! We didnt know what to do for 18,000spectators a twin memorial sculpture, unveiled on 11 May 1986 which. Would prove to be he told the ormondroyd twins bradford fire in 2015 but the ground had enough for. The stones an integral part of the most harrowing scenes ever witnessed anything like it either! 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