This Memorial constitutes three irregular grey standing stones inside a low wall. The Central stone is inscribed as follows:
IN MEMORY OF THE 50 PEOPLE
WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN
THE SUMMERLAND FIRE DISASTER
ON 2 AUGUST 1973
Erected by Douglas Borough Council
and dedicated on 2 August 2013 on the
40th Anniversary of the Tragedy.
We will not forget
Cha jeanmayd jarrod
The last two lines are flanked by triskelion (or Three Legs of Man) and at the foot of the Stone is the Coat of Arms of Douglas Borough Council.
The stones to the left and right each bear 25 names of those who died in the disaster.
Below is an extract from the History of the Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service website:
On 2 August 1973 at 7:40pm some boys accidentally set fire to a dismantled kiosk at the Summerland Leisure complex on Douglas promenade. At 8:01pm central fire control in John Street received a 999 call from Duggan's radio cabs informing the fire service that the Summerland Leisure Complex on Douglas Promenade was on fire. The sequence of events that followed this tragic fire have been well published in the past. Some 51 people perished in the disaster and it is the worst British peace time disaster involving fire since 1929.
On 3 September 1973 the Lieutenant Governor appointed a Commission of Enquiry into the Summerland disaster and the enquiry lasted until February 1974. The Commission urged the immediate revision of Theatre Regulations and drastically changed the whole approach to fire safety on the Isle of Man.
From wikipedia:
The cause of the fire was three boys smoking in a small, disused kiosk adjacent to the centre's miniature golf course. Eventually the burning kiosk collapsed against the exterior of the building. This part of the building was clad in a material called Galbestos—profiled steel sheeting with asbestos felt on both sides coated with bitumen,with limited fire-resistance qualities. The fire spread to the wall's interior soundproofing material, which also had poor fire-resistance qualities, causing an explosion that ignited the highly flammable acrylic sheeting which covered the rest of the building. The fire spread quickly across the sheeting on the leisure centre walls and roof, and through vents which were not properly fireproofed. The acrylic melted, which allowed more oxygen to enter and dropped burning melted material, both starting other fires and injuring those trying to escape, The building's open-plan design included many unblocked internal spaces that acted as chimneys, adding to the conflagration.
There was no attempt to evacuate the 3,000 people present until the visible evidence of the flames prompted a panic-stricken mass rush for the exits, where many people were crushed and trampled. Because of the locked fire doors, many people headed to the main entrance, which caused a crush.
The fire services were not called for over twenty minutes, and even then the call did not originate from the centre. Instead the first call came from a passing taxi driver and another via the captain of a ship located 2 miles (3.2 km) out at sea who radioed HM Coastguard and said "It looks as if the whole of the Isle of Man is on fire". The Coastguard immediately called the fire brigade. The first responding fire crews immediately realised additional resources would be required and almost every resource available to the Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service was mobilised to the incident (93 of its 106 firefighters and all 16 of its engines)
Between fifty and fifty-three people died in the fire. The number of fatalities was worsened by the failure of power supplies and emergency generators, inadequate ventilation and locked fire doors.
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