Warwickshire Council fined £30,000 over firefighter deaths
Warwickshire council has been fined £30,000 over the deaths of four firefighters who lost their lives in a fire at a vegetable packing plant in Warwickshire.
John Averis, 27, Ashley Stephens, 20 and Darren Yates-Badley, 24 died in the building in Atherstone-on-Stour in November 2007. A fourth firefighter, Ian Reid, 44, died later in hospital.
Mr Justice Macduff described the deaths as a “dreadful accident”. Warwickshire County Council pleaded guilty to health and safety charges earlier this year.
Mr Macduff said the fine imposed “in no way” summed up the cost of the four men’s lives but highlighted deficiencies in record-keeping and information given to fire crews at the time of the blaze.
Speaking after the sentencing, Warwickshire’s community safety spokesman, councilor Richard Hobbs, apologised for the fire authority’s failings. He said: “We pleaded guilty to the charge because we recognised and accepted that there were failings on our part back in 2007. No fire service can guarantee that nothing will ever go wrong again but we are confident that our service is as safe as it can be.”
Earlier this year, 3 fire service managers were cleared of manslaughter charges in relation to the deaths.
Ian Reid’s widow, Julie said: “No matter what amount of fine is imposed, it will not bring Ian back or turn the clock back so that I can stop him attending the fire on that fateful night. The judge said at a previous hearing that if he imposed a large fine, the only losers would be the taxpayers. I would like to remind him that the losers in this tragic event are the four men who lost their lives and their still deeply grieving families.”