On 2 November 2007 a major

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...

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

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Four firefighters from the Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service 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 Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

charges and Warwickshire County Council 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 Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

pitches caught fire in a suspected

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

attack. Four of the approximate 100 firefighters from Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service 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 is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

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 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 The Crown Court is the criminal trial court, court of first instance in England and Wales responsible for hearing all indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals of the decisions of magistrates' courts. It is ...

. 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 The Stafford Combined Court Centre is a Crown Court venue, which deals with criminal cases, as well as a County Court venue, which deals with civil cases, in Victoria Square, Stafford, England. History Until the early 1990s, criminal court hea ...

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 2000s fires in the United Kingdom 2007 fires in Europe 2007 in England 2000s in Warwickshire Building and structure fires in England Disasters in Warwickshire November 2007 in the United Kingdom Warehouse fires