On 2 November 2007 a major

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames a ...

occurred at a warehouse near the village of Atherstone on Stour in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Four firefighters from the

Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service serving the county of Warwickshire in the West Midlands region of England. The service covers an area of and a population of around 546,600 people. It employs 550 st ...

were killed whilst tackling the blaze. This was the largest loss of life for a fire brigade in the United Kingdom for 35 years. In 2012, three of their commanding officers were acquitted of manslaughter charges and

Warwickshire County Council Warwickshire County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Warwickshire in England. Its headquarters are located at Shire Hall, Market Square, in centre of the county town of Warwick. Politically the county is ...

was fined for failing to ensure safety at work.

The fire

On the evening of 2 November 2007, a vegetable packing plant the size of four football pitches caught fire in a suspected arson attack. Four of the approximate 100 firefighters from

who were mobilised to the scene were reported missing that night after they went in to tackle the fire. One, Ian Reid, was rescued but died later in hospital. Due to the debris and the instability of the building the bodies of John Averis, Ashley Stephens and Darren Yates-Badley were not recovered until 6 November. This was the most firefighters lost in a single incident in the United Kingdom since seven firefighters died while fighting a fire at a warehouse in Kilbirnie Street in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

in 1972.

Subsequent charges

On 28 February 2011, it was announced that three officers from the Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service would face charges of manslaughter by gross negligence over the deaths. On 6 May 2011, the three officers appeared at the Warwickshire Justice Centre to face the charges. Warwickshire County Council also faced a charge under the

Health and Safety at Work Act The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974c 37 (abbreviated to "HSWA 1974", "HASWA" or "HASAWA") is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that defines the fundamental structure and authority for the encouragement, regulation and enfor ...

of failing to ensure the safety of its employees. They were all granted unconditional bail. It was agreed both cases would be dealt with in the Crown Court. A hearing took place on 20 January 2012 at Wolverhampton Crown Court at which Warwickshire County Council entered a guilty plea to failing to ensure the health and safety of its employees. On 18 April 2012, the three fire officers, Timothy Woodward, Adrian Ashley and Paul Simmons, appeared in court charged with manslaughter by gross negligence. The trial started at Stafford Crown Court on 20 April 2012; on 21 May the judge directed that Simmons be acquitted and on 30 May the jury returned a verdict of not guilty against Woodward and Ashley. Warwickshire County Council was fined £30,000 in December 2012.

References

External links

BBC report
{{DEFAULTSORT:Warwickshire warehouse fire, 2007 2007 disasters in the United Kingdom 2007 fires in the United Kingdom 2007 in England 2000s in Warwickshire Building and structure fires in England Disasters in Warwickshire November 2007 events in the United Kingdom Warehouse fires