Harrogate man jailed over huge tyre fire in Bradford that blazed for nearly three weeks
The fire led to the closure of 20 schools, with 100 firefighters working to put it out
A Harrogate man who ran a tyre site where a huge fire broke out in Bradford and blazed for nearly three weeks has been jailed.
It produced a huge plume of black toxic smoke that led to the closure of 20 schools, businesses, and the cancellation of trains, with 100 firefighters working to put out the blaze at its height.
Stuart Bedford, 62, from Fairfax Avenue had stored hundreds of thousands of tyres at the site on Spring Mill Street where the blaze started in November 2020. He will spend 12 months behind bars for operating an unauthorised regulated facility and keeping controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution and harm to human health.
Area Manager for Operational Response Scott Donegan said “The tyre fire at Spring Mill Street in November 2020 was one of the largest and most resource-intensive in the last decade of operations at West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.
“It diverted valuable resources from the fire and rescue service and other partners which would have been better used in support of the public during the Covid Pandemic.
“This was a preventable fire, caused in part by the illegal wate management activities of the defendants.
“The sentences they have received highlight the significant dangers these illegal storage activities present to the public and our environment.
“We would like to thank our colleagues at the Environment Agency for their hard work and dedication in bringing this successful prosecution.”
The blaze began in the early morning of November 16th, and the fire service did not declare the incident fully closed until December 5th.
Both Bradford Crown Court and West Yorkshire Police’s Trafalgar House Police Station had to be evacuated at the height of the fire.
A report from West Yorkshire Fire previously said the Environment Agency had been made aware of reports of illegal storage of tyres at the site five months earlier. Fire crews went to the site with the Environment Agency and offered advice to the operators on how to safely store tyres while an investigation was underway.
The blaze led to similar sites across West Yorkshire being inspected and highlighted the danger of such sites to fire services across the country.