102 Moseley Rd in 2008, from Barnard on The Stirrer
As has been well documented in local and national media, there was an ‘incredibly severe fire’ in a disused care home on Moseley Road yesterday morning, in which two people died and another two were injured. Below is an unedited press release and appeal for information sent to me by West Midlands Police. There is also a discussion around the incident on The Stirrer Forum.
FOR RELEASE: WEST Midlands Police and the fire service continue to investigate the cause of a major fire at a disused care home.
The unexplained blaze which claimed the lives of two people happened in the early hours of yesterday morning (Tuesday 20 July) on Mosley Road, Highgate.
Two men escaped the building which officers now know was used by rough sleepers.
One of the survivors, a 23-year-old man, remains in a stable condition in hospital suffering from smoke inhalation and minor burns.
The second, a 48-year-old man, also attended hospital and was discharged the same day.
The two people whose remains were found are yet to be identified.
Mosley Road itself remains closed as structural engineers from the city council assess the site.
Chief Inspector Sean Russell, from Birmingham Central police station said: “Given the severity of the fire, the investigation is likely to take some considerable time.
“We continue to keep an open mind as to the cause of this unexplained fire and urge anyone with any information about the people who used the building or the incident itself to contact us.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Birmingham Central police station or the national charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
If you have any pictures of some protest posters that caught your eye, upload them to the Facebook group too! The Fight The Power exhibition opens with a private view on the evening of Weds 2nd and is on until 26th JUNE. The new Zellig Gallery is open 10AM – 5PM (Monday to Saturday).
Very intriguing idea from Dave Harte to do something lovely with the unused viaducts in Digbeth, shown on the above map:
we should have allotments on top of the abandoned Victorian rail viaduct that goes through Digbeth. They did something similar in Paris? New York? I can’t recall – someone will remind me.
I’ve often wanted to get to the top of this abandoned viaduct, which for some strange reason (I forget what) was never actually used as a railway line. I’m told that with a little bit of determination it is possible to get up there via Upper Trinity Street and discover a hidden, wild green oasis after a short walk along the path, which would be perfect for a Digbeth summer picnic…
April’s Irish Heritage meeting saw Birmingham author Ann Cullen talk about the story and inspiration behind her latest book Deceit and Settling in the West. It was a very interesting session, where Ann spoke about her childhood move from Galway to Birmingham, her journey from Copywriter at the Birmingham Post and Mail to a creative writer, her sources of inspiration and how she is working to overcome a current case of writer’s block. A video of her talk is above, and below is Irish Heritage Vice Chair John Macintyre’s review of the evening:
Authoress Awakened
Salthill in Galway
The April Event of the Birmingham Irish Heritage Group presented local author Ann Cullen who read extracts of her latest novel – Settling in the West. This insightful novella is about two Birmingham Irish daughters who swapped urban Erdington for rural Galway and described their marriages to Galwaymen. It deals with their reactions to living in an ancient environment, where local customs persist, such as the lighting of a huge bonfire on Midsummer’s Eve – St Johns Night in June.
Settling in the West also entailed an exorcism of a sad spirit – Cath, who had been wrongly convicted of sorcery in 1692. Her only crime being an old woman in the woods, using herbs for healthy concoctions, but this was enough to have her hanged in the extremely unforgiving and fearful 17th century.
Ann Cullen fielded several questions about her Novella, especially concerning the Midsummer’s Eve bonfire, which many people agreed was an intrinsic part of rural Ireland today, where Christianity and the old pagan customs combined. Sagacious Sammy from Belfast remarked that the Irish Church had hijacked the old ways and incorporated them into its own beliefs.
A storm in Salthill
Mike Walsh asked her inspiration for her story, to which Ann replied it was based on her two daughters who enjoyed Salthill childhood holidays, and decided to revisit Galway where they met a couple of gorgeous Galwaymen and married them, and that Cath had been haunting rural Galway from 1692 until a recent exorcism. Ann Cullen was also questioned about the Evil Martha in her second story Deceit, which chronicled a Maniac Murderess in Meadowfield. She replied that thankfully it was mainly fiction, but also based and her experiences as a copywriter for the Birmingham Post and Mail where she had encountered all walks of life.
Irish Heritage Events are held one the first Wednesday evening of every Month upstairs at the luxuriously appointed Irish Centre in Digbeth Birmingham. Doors open from 7pm for a fresh exciting Event which commences at 7.30 pm. Complimentary Beverages and Biscuits are served afterwards from around 8.30 pm, and the general public are very welcome, so bring your friends.
I took a stroll down Cheapside today to take a look at what was left of the D&P Textiles warehouse after the massive fire yesterday. As you can see from the photos, quite a bit of damage has been done – the roof of the storage area has completely gone.
One of the guys clearing up said, “It’s made a lot of mess. But it’s made the news, it’s made this area famous.” Although I’d like to think Digbeth can be famous for a bit more than a fire, he’s not wrong:
BBC News reported on the ‘suspicious’ nature of the fire and the building’s asbestos roof, which apparently ‘poses no risk to the public’. Good to know.
The Birmingham Post quoted a lot of numbers – ’45 firemen tackled the blaze…ten engines, three main jets and a hydraulic platform had been used to douse the fire.’
The Express and Star disagreed with the Birmingham Post and said there were 60 firemen. They’ve got a picture of three of them squirting hosepipes at the blaze.
The Birmingham Mail predicted Monday morning ‘commuter misery’ due to resulting road closures, which I was surprised by as the Bradford Street entrance to Rea Street was open by the end of Sunday and Cheapside is not a major route road. Did anyone experience any problems this morning?
According to an update report on BBC News today, Managing Director of D&P Textiles Phil King has promised the factory will reopen soon, and ‘he hoped his workforce of 35 women would be back at their machines within the next couple of weeks.’ Let’s hope the mammouth clean-up operation he faces goes as smoothly as possible.
Thank God the only casualties were clothes. However, I did manage to find one surviving item – a lone piece red and gold ribbon. This now has a new home in the DiGpuss Shop of found items.
If you buy a copy of this week’s Birmingham Post you’ll find inside a supplement all about Digbeth: Soul of the City, with articles about that Big City Plan, Digital District things and places like South Birmingham College, The Bond, Fazeley Studios and the new Birmingham Coach Station. You’ll find some spectacular photos from yesteryear on pages 4 and 5 and on page 16 there’s an article by yours truly, all about a few if my favourite Digbeth things. In a newsagent near you until Wednesday.
What are the top three things you feel should be done for Digbeth?
My second wish is for many local loud-speakers to play the Intel sound logo to accompany the Microsoft bat-signal. Both can go off whenever one of the manyDigbethwebsites gets updated. It could be a bit like Twitter blog updates for those not on Twitter. Or something. My third and final wish is for the following not to happen:
For some reason I imagine these Rare Games people to be big-shot Yanks. I’m sure they’re not, but it placed a picture in my head – I’m walking through the Fazeley Studios corridors and meet a dashing American, who flashes me a bright-white smile. He says Hey There and tells me he’s new in town, and asks if I can help. I say Of Course (anything for you). Then he asks, Where’s the nearest cashpoint, decent parking, supermarket, mobile phone signal? I look uncomfortably on whilst realisation dawns – he has traded in his land of milk and honey for a place with None Of The Above.
According to Dave Harte, the best way to prevent this is to take Anna Blackaby’s advice of developing a Digbeth Business Improvement District (BID). I honestly don’t know if this is the answer, I just know I don’t want to disappoint the dashing American. Can you fix that for me Andy Munro? Pretty please?
Last night I got chatting to Friction Arts’ Sandra Hall (recently no. 43 in the Birmingham Post’s Power 50). She is mightilly upset that this pre-1950′s back-to-back on Lombard St is soon to be flattened. I had a sneaky look this morning but got caught mid-trespass by some builders preparing it for demolition, so didn’t get much further than the courtyard:
The builders weren’t sure what will be replacing it. “Probably a hotel.” Whatever it is, I doubt it’ll be as beautiful as this building. It’s a crying shame it couldn’t be preserved. The National Trust Birmingham Back to Backs on Hurst St show how lovely these houses can be.
Sandra and others from Friction Arts took some much better photos, which I’m trying to get my paws on.
This evening The Bond kicked off a series of exhibitions in their Boardrooms by launching a show of paintings by Abstract Edge, a group of artists from the Shropshire, Herefordshire and the Marches area. The Bond’s Director Anthony Collier said he hopes this will be the first of many exhibitions showing off talent from the West Midlands and surrounding areas.
The exhibition was enthusiastically launched by the Birmingham Post’s Arts Editor Terry Grimley (“I do love a man who goes on,” said the lady next to me). He reminisced that Digbeth was being labelled a ‘creative quarter’ back in 1998. Finally, after 10 years, “with The Bond and The Custard Factory lapping at each others heels”, he feels we’re getting there.
Abstract Edge’s easy-on-the-eye paintings are on display (and on sale, if you’re feeling flush) until 27th August. Please confirm a viewing with The Bond’s reception beforehand to avoid your visit clashing with their Boardroom bookings.
