16 April 2009

20 years since Hillsborough

20 years ago today 96 people were killed at the Hillsborough football ground in Sheffield.

The story behind it is on Wikipedia. In essence, an influx of fans crushed those already in the ground, the Police opened a gate to try to ease pressure at turnstiles, causing the crush. The Police kept a cordon around the Liverpool fans, preventing some of them escaping to carry the injured, because they wanted to separate groups of fans of rival teams. The Police turned away ambulances that had been called to deal with the injured.

It was a horrible appalling tragedy, one that saw an inquiry undertaken by Lord Taylor of Gosforth, which recommended an end to standing accommodation at football grounds. The Police did not apologise or ever admit any mistakes in their handling of the tragedy, the families of the dead today booed Culture Secretary Andy Burnham at a gathering at Anfield today to commemorate the death.

That weeping sore has not yet been healed.

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