The former management company of the White Swan hotel was fined £25,000, plus costs, after pleading guilty to serious breaches of fire safety laws. Ten guests were trapped in their bedrooms and had to be rescued from the first floor windows during the fire in March 2007.

The subsequent investigation revealed a catalogue of poor fire safety management, including

• a fire alarm panel which had been switched to”silenced” resulting in the fire alarm not being heard when the alarm operated.
• inadequate fire safety training for staff.
• fire alarms not being tested correctly.
• fire doors wedged open.
• no suitable fire evacuation plan for what to do in the event of a fire.

Mill House Inns Trading Ltd, owners of the hotel at the time of the fire, pleaded guilty to five separate charges and on each count and were fined the maximum allowed by Worthing Magistrates. In addition they also had to pay costs of £11,071.

The officer in charge of Community Protection for the fire brigade said that the hotel had the correct fire precautionary arrangements in place, but due to poor management they all became ineffective during the fire.

Maidstone Crown Court heard that Stuart Willard, 22, set nine fires in Tonbridge between August 2005 and January 2007, including a flat fire which led to the death of John Skilton.

Describing him as a dangerous man, Judge Andrew Patience sentenced Mr Willard to an indeterminate custodial sentence of at least eight years for manslaughter, and a total of seven years for the arson offences to run concurently.

At one stage it was thought that up to 40,000 litres of transformer oil was alight.

Five fire engines and one foam tender attended the fire and contained the blaze. Roads in the area were shut as smoke drifted across the A55. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is being investigated.

The plant is the largest employers in the North Wales area with approximately 540 employees.

Two crews of firefighters and the aerial ladder platform were called to the hotel to tackle the blaze for nearly three hours from around 6am. Crews used four sets of breathing apparatus and two hose reels to extinguish the fire in the first floor kitchen to which smoke and fire damage were confined.

General manager Tony Burns applauded the efforts of his staff: “It only took five minutes from when the alarms sounded at 5.50am to evacuate everyone. “Everyone was safe and, thanks to our satellite kitchen, we were still able to offer everyone breakfast. We will be having the kitchen deep cleaned as soon as possible and are looking forward to getting back to normal.”

John McDonald, manager of the Esplanade Hotel, praised the efforts of his night porter: “He dealt with the situation admirably and is now having a well-deserved sleep. We have an agreement with local hotels to help each other out in emergencies like this and were only too happy to have been of assistance.”

Kevin Roberts of North Wales Fire Service said: “This fire is yet another excellent example of how smoke alarm systems save lives. When the fire broke out, no members of staff were in the kitchen but staff on reception were alerted by the alarm and were able to evacuate guests and staff to safety immediately. The fire management procedure in this hotel was well-practised and worked well, ensuring all guests and staff escaped without injury.

Relatives of the 82 year old thought that the £14.95 “Hottie” would spare her the danger of scalding while filling a traditional hot water bottle. She is understood to have been overcome by fumes from the smoldering wheat-filled pack,and died the next day. Fire investigators in West Yorkshire say that they have dealt with another six similar incidents involving heat packs in the past year.

The instructions on the packaging are to place a cup of water with the pack in the microwave.  The water prevents the pack from drying out and smoldering.

Wheat bags have been used for many years as a supplemental therapy, in particular by older people with arthritis. The structure of the grain allows it to warm up quickly, and then slowly release its heat. But as the bag ages the chemicals in the wheat break down, making it prone to overheating.

Unattended chip pans left on cookers are a major cause of fire in the home. The retailer will no longer sell open chip pans in any of its stores, only electrical thermostatically controlled deep fat fryers, following a partnership with Tyne & Wear Fire & Rescue Service.

The inspectors, who were responding to complaints by members of the public, found blocked and obstructed emergency exits, unsafe storage of stock and severe overstocking at a Poundstretcher store in Newbury, Berkshire. The Council’s prosecutor said overstocking at the premises led to enforcement action on three previous occasions.

Imposing the fines at Reading Crown Court the judge said that the breaches amounted to placing profit before safety.

The man was sentenced to six months imprisonment after he was found to be storing 33 cartons of fireworks and 34 loose fireworks, most of which were rockets, and which had a total explosive content of 157.1 kg. He admitted to breaching the Manufacture and Storage of Explosive Regulations 2005.

The senior Petroleum and Explosive Inspector for West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said ” As the judge quite rightly pointed out in court, this was an extremely serious offence, hence the custodial sentence.

The prosecution follows a similar previous prosecution, when the premises were inspected after a major fire. The fire caused the closure of nearby railway lines and a number of roads, including the A406 and the M1. At the height of the incident around 100 fire fighters and 20 fire engines were needed to control the blaze in Cricklewood. Fire fighting activities went on for four days, and the site was closely monitored by the fire service afterwards.

An inspecting officer visited the premises in September 2007 and established that the size of the stacks exceeded fire service requirements. In two instances the the size limits were exceeded by a significant degree. As the offences were committed very soon after the previous conviction, the company was fined the maximum and were ordered to pay the fire brigade costs.

London Fire Brigade Assistant Commissioner Max Hood said ” All employers are reminded that those responsible for properties and premises need to abide by the law and carry out proper fire risk assessments and regular reviews “.

The Grade-11 listed structure had not been running for two years and has been vulnerable to attack. About 60 firefighters and 12 fire engines attended and took two hours to control the blaze. The loss of the rollercoaster is considered to be a great loss by the residents of Margate as it was hoped to reopen the ride to boost local tourism.

Margate police and the fire service are appealing for witnesses to come forward.