Fire Safety Science Digital Archive

A preliminary survey shows that at least 98 persons died in fires in England and Wales in the second quarter in 1970. The corresponding figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland were 34 and two respectively. The figure for England and Wales shows a decrease of about 25 per cent compared with the corresponding quarter in 1969. However the Scottish figure has doubled, The worst fire in the quarter occurred when oil on the surface of the Manchester ship canal became ignited, involved craft on the canal and resulted in five deaths.