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Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964

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dutchman
Spon End
16 of 65  Sun 20th Oct 2013 12:24pm  

On 20th Oct 2013 11:45am, Billybobs said: I was working in Meriden at Higgs & Hill when the fire broke out. We could hear fire engines, their bells ringing, travelling along the A45, presumably from Birmingham to help out.
Engines came from all over the region. I remember reading the crests on the sides of the engines, "City of Birmingham", "City of Wolverhampton", "City of Leicester", "City of Stoke-on-Trent", "City of Derby", etc. None of yer "West Midlands Metropolitan Council" rubbish in those days!
On 20th Oct 2013 11:45am, Billybobs said: Shortly after the fire I decided to join the Auxiliary Fire Brigade, I was 18 at the time. I anticipated that some time in the future I too would be involved in fighting some huge fire. As it turned out, for the period I was there, about 3yrs....not one single fire.
Except for the second huge fire in the very same building in 1966 do you mean? Wink
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
Billybobs
South Warwickshire
17 of 65  Sun 20th Oct 2013 9:16pm  

Thanks Dutchman, I not sure if the AFB were involved in dealing with the 1966 fire, I know I wasn't, hence my disappointment.
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
dutchman
Spon End
18 of 65  Sun 20th Oct 2013 9:24pm  

As far as I remember a Green Goddess was used to damp down the embers the following day but not involved in the main operation the night before. Smile
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
woodford
coventry
19 of 65  Sun 20th Oct 2013 10:34pm  

On 3rd Jul 2013 9:02pm, Foxcote said: A photograph of the hospital being evacuated.
Only just seen this - thanks for a very interesting photo! Big grin
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
Tony Herron
Lampeter, Ceredigion
20 of 65  Sun 20th Oct 2013 11:07pm  

One of my earliest memories - I remember Dad taking me to see the big building on fire in Gosford St, must have been the day after? I was only 4, surprised at that, as it feels as though I were older more like 6 or 7. EDIT: Or perhaps it was the later 1966 fire I was taken to see?
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
mickw
nuneaton
21 of 65  Fri 25th Oct 2013 5:11pm  

I lived in East Street at the time aged 9, me and a few mates went to get a better look, we went down Godiva Street and cut through a yard full of garages to I think it was called Kencast Buildings, I think they were prefab garages and sheds, we sat on the roof of one of the display buildings. I remember you could not see the road for hose pipes, I`ve never seen so many to this day, the fire brigade were pumping water out of the river, it had water in it in those days, the road was closed but the pub next to Kencast was still open (can`t remember the name of the pub), didn`t get back home till after midnight, my dad gave me a right roasting but knew exactly where I`d been, not a lot of point giving excuses. Went back the next day and watched the firemen throwing thousands of grey blankets out and damping down, that fire kept us entertained for days.
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
dutchman
Spon End
22 of 65  Fri 25th Oct 2013 5:34pm  

On 25th Oct 2013 5:11pm, mickw said: I lived in East Street at the time aged 9, me and a few mates went to get a better look, we went down Godiva Street and cut through a yard full of garages to I think it was called Kencast Buildings
Yes it was, Kencast precast concrete garages and sheds. There was even a precast concrete dog kennel for sale!
On 25th Oct 2013 5:11pm, mickw said: the road was closed but the pub next to Kencast was still open (can`t remember the name of the pub)
There were two pubs, the New Inn just below Kencast and the The Fox & Vivian a few doors up and directly opposite the blaze.
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
mickw
nuneaton
23 of 65  Sat 26th Oct 2013 1:11pm  

Thanks Dutchman, it was the New Inn, can`t understand how it was allowed to keep open though (it might have been fire command centre for police and fire brigade ha ha ha) convenient or what?
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
roystockdill
Hertfordshire
24 of 65  Mon 7th Apr 2014 11:48pm  

Not only was I there but I was a (then) young reporter on the Coventry Evening Telegraph and covered the story! I was sitting in Coventry Magistrates Court at the time when I heard the clanging of umpteen fire bells, so I left the court, found out what was happening, saw the blaze and rang the newsdesk to alert them that a very major story was happening. I can still remember that a major appeal was put out for private motorists and drivers to help with the evacuation of the hospital because the ambulances and emergency vehicles couldn't cope. I can still see it now, with scores of cars lined up all the way down the road and patients being ushered into them, clutching their belongings and some with drips protruding from their arms, held up by nurses. I never left the scene for many, many hours after that. I and a couple of other reporters stayed up all night, walking round and round the area, talking to people, nurses, policemen, firemen. etc, etc interviewing them and getting the full picture. We eventually returned to the Evening Telegraph office in Corporation Street at breakfast-time the following day and the three of us sat down and wrote the story. The following words that appear on the Mirror Pix reference were MINE! "As thick smoke swirled through the wards and flames licked dangerously close to hospital buildings, a fantastic rescue operation involving hundreds of civilian volunteers, as well as firemen, police, hospital staff and ambulancemen, swung rapidly into action.The blaze, the most spectacular since the war, was watched by thousands of homeward-bound workers from streets and vantage points all around the city." These words must have been lifted by the Mirror from the Evening Telegraph splash front page because I distinctly remember writing them! Why? Because one of my colleagues said: "Christ, how can you be so bloody bright at this time of the morning?" It is one of my most abiding memories of Coventry as a young provincial newspaper reporter, not long married. I married a girl from the Evening Telegraph advertising department who worked on the front counter taking adverts and we are still married 50 years later! Roy Stockdill Retired journalist. now a professional genealogist Watford, Hertfordshire
Roy Stockdill

Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
PhiliPamInCoventry
Holbrooks
25 of 65  Mon 7th Apr 2014 11:51pm  

Hello, Roystockdill & welcome to our Coventry forum Wave Thank you for your informative post. Thumbs up
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
deanocity3
keresley
26 of 65  Tue 8th Apr 2014 1:45pm  

Here is film of the fire from Mace Archive
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
mickw
nuneaton
27 of 65  Tue 8th Apr 2014 4:49pm  

Hi Deano Are you sure that this is the ministry of pensions in Coventry as I was there during the fire and only the top two floors were on fire and the clip shows the whole building being destroyed.? Cheers Cheers
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
MisterD-Di
Sutton Coldfield
28 of 65  Tue 8th Apr 2014 5:00pm  

I remember watching the fire on my way home from school. As I recall, the building was a T-shape with a large wing at the back. This seemed to be the part completely destroyed and I recall watching a huge wall on that wing collapse while we were there. So could it be that only the top floors were affected on the part adjacent to the road?
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
deanocity3
keresley
29 of 65  Tue 8th Apr 2014 7:26pm  

well says its a Government building near a hospital and it is the same year,was there another fire elsewhere?
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964
Wearethemods
Aberdeenshire
Thread starter
30 of 65  Wed 9th Apr 2014 9:21am  

I haven't seen the film Deano has attached as I can't access it on this PC for some reason. What I can say in response is that the 2 top floors of the old Morris Building facing Gulson Road were ablaze but 'sealed off' from the offices below (see my introductory post No.1 ) for the reasons given in said post the Staff who worked below were unaware of what was stored above their heads ! This may have been why the fire didn't reach ground level. The rear of the building ( Gulson Hospital facing) was in part burnt out, some of which collapsed and some of which was demolished later
Local History and Heritage - Ministry of Pensions fire, 1964

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