The Hillsborough Disaster

By Shannon Newton

The Hillsborough Disaster Date and Location (P2,M2)

The Hillsborough disaster occurred on 15 April 1989 just over 25 years ago at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England. During the FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest football clubs. The incident has since been blamed primarily on the police for letting too many people enter the stadium. It remains the worst stadium-related disaster in British history, and one of the world's worst football disasters

What Type of Incident is it and How Did it Happen? (P2,M2)

This type of major incident is technically man made

Events began to unfold from around 14:30 on what was a bright and sunny day. Liverpool fans had begun arriving at the ground from midday, but had to enter their designated stand at Leppings Lane through a small number of turnstiles.

Once inside, many made their way on to the terraced lower stand which was ringed with blue-painted steel fences and laterally divided into five separate "pens".

Fencing had been put up by many football clubs during the 1970s and 80s to control crowds and prevent pitch invasions.

By about 14:50 pens 3 and 4 - those directly behind the goal -were full, but outside the ground thousands of fans were still waiting to get in.

The pens' official combined capacity was 2,200. It was later discovered that this should have been reduced to 1,600 as crush barriers installed three years earlier did not meet official safety standards.

At 14:52 police ordered a large exit gate - Gate C - to be opened to alleviate the crush outside the ground. Around 2,000 fans then made their way into the ground and headed straight for a tunnel leading directly to pens 3 and 4.

This caused severe crushing in the pens. Fans began climbing over side fences into the relatively less packed pens 1 and 5 to escape.

It was later estimated that more than 3,000 supporters were admitted to the central pens - almost double the "safe" capacity.

At 15:00, the game kicked off. Five minutes later a crush barrier in pen 3 gave way, causing people to fall on top of each other.

Supporters continued to climb perimeter fences to escape, while others were dragged to safety by fans in the upper tiers.

At 15:06, a policeman ran on to the pitch and ordered the referee to stop the game. In the chaotic aftermath, supporters tore up advertising boards to use as makeshift stretchers and tried to administer first aid to the injured.

The authorities' response to the disaster was slow and badly co-ordinated. Firefighters with cutting gear had difficulty getting into the ground, and although dozens of ambulances were dispatched, access to the pitch was delayed because police were reporting "crowd trouble".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DOIsxUKEtU (stop at 3:26)

Details of any Fatalities, Injuries and Damage Caused (P2,M2)

Around 776 people became badly hurt or injured when this disaster took place. Just over half of these injuries incurred before the match had even started .

96 people died due to the vast amount of people there were in the stadium. People just got crushed. Of the 96 people who died, only 14 were ever admitted to hospital. Many people were injured or unfortunately died and the majority of them were only young teenagers.

The damage afterwards to the stadium was awful whereby the crowds of people had worked together to break down the gates and fences, advertising boards had been pulled down to use as stretchers. The stadium looks like a bomb site !!!

How this was Covered by the Media (P2,M2)

Media coverage of Hillsborough has had significant consequences on a number of levels.

The immediate reaction of the press following Hillsborough was to blame the fans. The proof is there for all to see and it extends way beyond the Sun's headlines. However, as that headline is the most shocking even to this day it is only right that we remind people what they said:

“The Truth; some fans picked pockets of victims; some fans urinated on the brave cops; some fans beat up PC giving kiss of life.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8JgMEvU6mA

Newspaper Headlines

These were some of the main headlines straight after the disaster. The media had twisted people’s statements so it looked like it was the fans to blame when really it was the police department

The serious allegations of misbehaviour by Liverpool supporters, most infamously carried by the Sun on 19 April 1989, came from Whites Press Agency in Sheffield. There is no evidence to support the allegations of drunkenness and violence by supporters which were spread by the police.

The panel also found that the South Yorkshire Police Chief Constable, Peter Wright, encouraged junior officers to present this case to the media, as "a defence", to present a rock solid story. The nature of the stories was to falsely blame the supporters for causing the disaster

What were the Initial Effects on the Local Population/Community (p3)

The initial effect on the local community was one of outrage. They couldn’t believe that the local police allowed this to happen

Everyone was in shock

Survivors and relatives of the deceased and injured were grief-striken by the tragedy and the overwhelming sense of injustice

There was a sense of anger amongst those people within the local community that immediately afterwards the national press were quick to blame ‘hooliganism’ and not the police

The local population were deeply sadened and demographically the immediate population declined due to the sudden deaths.

What Were the Initial Effects on the Rescue Workers? (p3)

The number of casualties and their serious nature overwhelmed those involved in the initial rescue operation

Rescue workers were frustrated as they were unable to gain access to the ground in time to help more people as the police were reporting ‘crowd trouble’

Ambulance and Firefighters felt frustrated that it took too long for them to be allowed in to the Stadium and gain access to help the injured

What Were the Long Term Effects & have the local Communities been able to Return to Normal (m2)

Many people lost family members so this has caused stress and discomfort

Many people in Liverpool have and will refuse to buy The Sun newspaper due to how they criticized and manipulated the facts. Thousands of shops in Liverpool will not even sell The Sun. Even to do this day shops and the general public will not read The Sun.

Lots of people who were at the disaster witnessed people dying right before their eyes. This has caused some people to have post-traumatic stress disorder.

It is unjust and absurd for the residents of Hillsborough and the families of those who survived to have had to wait 25 years for any form of official apology which happened recently by the Prime Minister David Cameron

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiPu7cFMuY4

What are the Wider Impacts of the Incident Locally, Nationally and Internationally (M2)

Individual Senior Police Officers faced disciplinary procedures and decided to leave the Police Force

There was a loss of faith in police procedures locally and nationally

There was uncertainty of what to believe in the national press

Both nationally and internationally there was widespread disbelief and concern that this horrific tragedy had happened on such a scale with so many fatalities and was then covered up afterwards