A forty-year retrospective of a tragedy in northern England, after-the-jump ….
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Regular readers of mine are well aware of my covering developments in the Hillsborough Disaster story — about a 1989 soccer stadium tragedy in England where 96 people were crushed to death due to police mistakes, cover-ups and our ‘ol pal Rupert Murdoch attempting to shift blame onto the Liverpool fans.
Until recently, I was unaware of a different English stadium disaster that took place forty years ago this month — in part, as there were no criminal charges, yet involving both negligence, accidents and happenstance that led to the death of 56 (and injuries to 256) in the Bradford City Stadium fire. Here is that story.
Unlike U.S. sports (with one major league and a series of minor leagues), England has several different levels of major leagues. The Premier League is their top Level 1 league, and they have several others (from 2 down) with both promotion (top teams at one level promoted to the next highest level) and relegation (with bottom teams demoted), which is important to the Bradford story.
On May 11, 1985 the Bradford City team was hosting the final game of the season, and it was a party-like atmosphere: the team had won the Level 3 championship (with promotion to Level 2 for next season) and was presented the trophy before the match began at 3:00 PM. Then at 3:40 PM … the party was over.
We in North America may look at Wrigley Field and Fenway Park (dating to the 1910’s) as ancient, yet many stadiums in England date back to the 1800’s (though with modifications since). Valley Parade stadium in Bradford was constructed in 1886 (originally for rugby) and its last major overhaul was in 1911, thus it was nearly seventy-five years since its last major work.
The main stands were largely constructed of wood, and for years they were warned that it was a fire hazard — with worn-out floorboards, and trash accumulating below — plus, the old stadium roof was covered with (highly flammable) bituminous roofing felt. The team had financial problems two years earlier, and needed extra time to be able to afford the reconstruction. Yet now, the team was set to begin work on a complete overhaul (including concrete and steel) two days later, as they had already taken delivery of the components.
The match started in a happy mood, until five minutes from half-time. An ex-pat visitor from Australia had been smoking a cigarette and put it on the floor, intending to stamp it out (which would not have been a problem with a concrete floor). Instead, it slipped through a crack in the floorboards … and he and his son poured their coffees through the crack, intending to douse the butt. Had the accumulated paper from years ago not been situated below, it may have worked.
But alas… at the 1:30 mark of this video ... aided by a strong wind .. it happened.
The fans who rushed onto the field quickly probably escaped … yet many rushed backwards towards the exits and turnstiles (which some law enforcement officials suggested) … which were locked, without any stewards to open them. There were no fire extinguishers at the gates (due to fears of vandalism/theft) and so many of the dead were either burned or died of smoke inhalation (and a few were crushed trying to crawl under the locked turnstiles).
The announcer in the video above (John Helm) said later of his experience, "I probably should have had a little bit of counselling ... which I never did have."
The aftermath
Unlike the Hillsborough Disaster, the official coroner’s inquiry ruled that there were no criminal charges to be brought, which was upheld by a jury. There were civil findings against the club (2/3 fault) and the West Yorkshire council (1/3 under the 1971 Fire Protections Act). The fire led to many rule changes: that no new wooden stands could be constructed, and that existing ones had to ban smoking were merely the first changes. Many other stadiums voluntarily did safety upgrades to their grounds. This year, a BBC Two documentary Unforgotten: the Bradford City Fire premiered, trying to place the entire event in perspective.
A memorial to the 56 at the rebuilt stadium
If there could be said to be any silver linings to this tragedy: one would be the fifty people who received commendations for bravery (risking their own lives to save others from the flames).
The other would be the founding (at the University of Bradford) of its Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit— founded by the late Dr. David Sharpe (who performed more than twenty operations in the first few hours after the blaze). This unit has been recognized (both nationally as well as internationally) for its innovations. One that Dr. Sharpe pioneered was the Bradford Sling— that enables an arm to be held vertically (not just horizontally) to enable healing.
Dr. Sharpe (1946-2023)
This unit has received funding from many donors, and in 2016 one of them ... was one of the fifty commended for bravery from the fire. Inspector Terence Slocombe (who rescued three people from burning alive) decided to sell the medals he received at auction and donate the proceeds to the burns unit, years after his retirement.
Earlier this month, a memorial service was held to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the tragedy. Just as with Liverpool supporters who keep the Hillsborough Disaster memory close-to-heart .. so do those in Bradford.
Let’s close with this from one of the Isley Brothers
And from Ed Tracey, your faithful correspondent this evening ........
In the diary by Dan Bacher about this year’s festive Salmon Run (bringing together runners, Tribal leaders, families, educators, and community members) after four major dams along the Klamath River were removed last year — RosyFinchclarifies how this might affect spawning patterns.
And lastly: yesterday's Top Mojo - mega-mojo to the intrepid mik ...... who rescued this feature from oblivion:
