It was one of Kent’s worst fires since the wartime Blitz, destroying 15 homes and damaging another 29.
That no one died when the inferno ripped through the Tannery development in Canterbury city centre, 10 years ago today, is something of a miracle.
The devastation, however, was catastrophic, with the blaze carving a huge, scorched scar through the terrace of flats in Creine Mill Lane North.
It is thought that the time of the fire – which broke out in the early afternoon when many residents were out or awake and alert to escape – played a significant factor in it not ending in tragedy.
But dozens lost all their possessions and were left distraught, homeless and in tears.
‘The fire was able to spread very quickly’
The cause of the blaze was never conclusively determined. Neither Canterbury City Council, which is responsible for enforcing building regulations, nor Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS) ever published any findings of their investigations.
But firefighters were concerned about how quickly the blaze had spread through the properties and the finger was pointed at inadequate fire wall protection.
The fire even later featured as a briefing note in the investigation into the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London in which 72 people died.
In it, Paul Flaherty, the then assistant director at KFRS, says: “The building (Tannery) is a timber-framed construction and so the fire was able to spread very quickly among the frame voids.
“This meant it was a difficult fire to fight in the early stages.”
It also refers to a Freedom of Information request by our sister paper, the Kentish Gazette, into what investigations had been conducted by KFRS and Canterbury City Council to ensure it couldn’t happen again.
But both replied that there were none.
Remarkably, this week, a KFRS spokesman told KentOnline that all data on the 2015 fire held by its investigations team “had expired after seven years in line with the retention policy”.
In the aftermath of the blaze, the Kentish Gazette put a number of questions to Bellway Homes, the Newcastle-based company which started redeveloping the former St Mildred’s Tannery site into a 416-home development in 2005.
A Bellway spokesman said: “The affected block was constructed to all applicable building regulations at the time of development and was subject to building control inspections during construction.”
Town and Country Housing, which bought part of the development from Bellway, later revealed that a surveyor’s report following the fire showed inadequate fire wall protection.
The revelation also prompted Canterbury City Council to lobby the government on tightening building regulations, including the installation of sprinkler systems.
Former Canterbury MP, Sir Julian Brazier, made the same demands.
Sprinklers were never put in the rebuilt homes, though upgraded fire alarms and beefed-up fire walls have been installed across all the properties.
A day of devastation
But the fire is not something any of those who lost their homes and possessions will ever forget.
It sparked a huge emergency response as the flames swept through the roofs of the residential block at frightening speed.
Organisations, including St John’s Ambulance, Red Cross and the WI, also responded to the incident and the Westgate Hall was opened as a shelter station for affected families.
The now-homeless residents found themselves being put up by relatives or moved into temporary accommodation. Traumatised by the experience, many would never return when their homes were rebuilt or renovated.
Among those affected at the time were residents Sarah Horton and Dan Berry, whose flat in the Tannery development was their first home together.
They said they felt lucky to escape, despite losing practically all their possessions.
Speaking to the Gazette at the time, Sarah said she and Dan bought the flat the previous year in a shared ownership arrangement with Town and Country Housing.
She said at the time: “It was our first foot on the property ladder. Just 48 hours ago, this was a really desirable place to live, in the centre of Canterbury, parking, two bedrooms, so a good investment for us as a first property.”
Dan then described the couple’s horror as the blaze took hold and quickly swept through the terrace.
“I had all the windows open and I could smell smoke,” he said. “I thought, ‘Is someone having a barbecue?’
“I shut the windows because there was a lot of smoke coming in. Then I saw a couple of fire engines and saw the roof was on fire down the far end and spreading pretty quickly.
“I could see the firefighters were very quickly moving down the street towards us. It felt like it happened really, really quickly.
“Then one of the firemen started banging on the door, shouting, ‘You need to get out’.
“People were screaming outside and children were crying. They’d been evacuated and were watching their homes burn.”
Also made homeless was mum-of-four Colette Scott whose children were left with just the clothes on their backs.
It was the second tragedy to hit her in recent years, having lost her fiancé Callum Osborn in a tragic building site accident in 2011.
“I’ve lost everything. All the children’s clothes and toys are gone. We’ve been left with what we were wearing,” she said.
The aftermath
The Kentish Gazette launched an appeal to help those who had lost all their possessions, which raised £10,000 in a few weeks.
In the aftermath, attention quickly turned to what caused the blaze and how it could spread so rapidly between the homes.
The source of the outbreak was suspected to be a boiler in a utility cupboard, said firefighters, although that was never conclusively established.
But the finger was also pointed at the timber-framed construction and alleged inadequate fire protection between the property roof voids, despite them complying with the building regulations.
Former Kentish Gazette reporter Alex Claridge, who lives opposite the fire-ravaged block in the Tannery complex, said: “We all know how quickly that fire spread.
“Months after, their own report suggests possible problems with fire separation between homes.
“Much as I welcome extra fire alarms, they do nothing to help stop the spread of the flames once a fire has started.”
He says residents had to leave their properties for up to three months while contractors installed additional fire protection in areas in all the buildings.
That is of some comfort to residents in the four-storey terrace, including care home kitchen manager Tracey Whitear.
She is still living in the rebuilt block and was there when the fire broke out 10 years ago. Although her home on the end of the terrace escaped damage, she was still traumatised by the drama.
“It is reassuring that there is better fire protection now, but it should have never happened in the first place,“ she said this week.
Yet it would not be the last time that residents would find themselves fleeing their homes due to fire.
Residents’ safety remains ‘a continuing priority’
Last November, a small blaze in an electrical box in a ground-floor parking bay broke out, forcing firefighters to evacuate a number of residents from their homes as a precaution.
Because of the previous major incident, the city council says its emergency procedures kicked in and an officer was dispatched to the scene to liaise directly with firefighters and families.
“Other members of staff made their way to the Age UK centre in Castle Row. Its volunteers opened its doors and supported us in being ready to receive people needing shelter,” said a council spokesman
“This was because the electricity in part of the Tannery had been turned off, which meant fire detection equipment there was not available.
“Out of six households that were displaced, our help was needed to find two somewhere to stay.
“The welfare centre was eventually stood down at 2am.”
Referring to the original major blaze, a spokesperson for Town & Country Housing said this week that residents’ safety remains “a continuing priority”.
He added: “The Tannery fire was a devastating event and its impact, I am sure, is still being felt today by those affected.
“Following the fire, additional work was carried out by the developer to bring all homes up to current building regulation standards.
“The 89 flats owned by Town & Country Housing were included in this work.
“Resident safety is, of course, a continuing priority for TCH across all our homes, and we continually review our approach to ensure that we meet all fire safety legislation.”
At the time of the build, there was no statutory requirement for the city council’s building control department to inspect or sign off at the stage of cavity walls.
As a result of the fire, practices were changed to carry out inspections of cavity walls in any flat developments of timber-framed properties.
