Three Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service managers are to face charges of manslaughter by gross negligence for the deaths of four firefighters in a warehouse in Atherstone-on-Stour in 2007, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has announced.
In addition, Warwickshire County Council will face a charge of failing to ensure the health and safety at work of its employees, under section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
Ian Reid, John Averis, Ashley Stephens and Darren Yates-Badley lost their lives in a fire at the premises of Wealmoor (Atherstone) Ltd on 2 November 2007.
Michael Gregory, reviewing lawyer in the CPS special crime division, said:
“Following a thorough investigation by Warwickshire Police and the Health and Safety Executive, I have reviewed the evidence in this case very carefully and I have decided that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge Paul Simmons, Adrian Ashley and Timothy Woodward with gross negligence manslaughter.
“Mr Simmons and Mr Ashley were watch managers and Mr Woodward was a station manager at the time of the fire, but they all acted as incident commanders before, during and after their colleagues were sent into the burning building. In that role they were responsible for making the operational decisions while their colleagues tried to put out the fire.
“I have also decided that there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction against Warwickshire County Council for failing to protect the health and safety of its employees and that it is in the public interest to prosecute.
Nine other individuals who were investigated by Warwickshire Police have been told that there was insufficient evidence to take any action against them.
The defendants will appear at Leamington Spa magistrates’ court on 1 April.
The CPS said that it had not received any evidence from the police relating to any suspects for deliberately starting the fire.
The CPS added that the decision about whether any prosecutions should be brought under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 is one for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). For its part, the HSE told Info4fire that no formal decision has yet been made on whether such prosecutions will be brought and that it could not comment at this stage.
