17/10/2011 Inside Out Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

Hello and welcome to a new series of Inside Out from Bridlington.

This week, we investigate whether the deaths of two young jockeys who

died in a fire at a block of flats in North Yorkshire could have been

avoided. As the authorities consider

prosecuting those in charge of the building's fire safety, a mother

demands answers. My daughter was screaming at the

window for help. Also tonight, Baywatch. We find out

just what it takes to become a Bridlington lifeguard. I'm a

terrible lifeguard! And, French fighters. Exclusive

wartime footage of the men who fought the Nazis from an air base

Last year, a man was convicted of the manslaughter of two young

jockeys after setting fire to a block of flats in North Yorkshire.

But Inside Out has discovered the local authority is also considering

legal action against those responsible for the building's fire

safety. I've been investigating whether the deaths of these two

young people could have been avoided.

I want to know how my daughter didn't get out, how was she meant

to get out? They've cut corners and people have died. My daughter's

been tortured to death. We should never have been basically

told that fire safety was satisfactory. It is evident now

that that was not the case. Just over two years ago, two young

people died in a horrific fire in this block of flats in Norton.

Jamie Kyne was just 18 and Jan Wilson was 19 and they were both

promising young jockeys. Like so many other young people who

come here with the love of racing to try and learn their craft, the

two teenagers caught up in this weekend's tragedy were part of a

close community who lived, worked and socialised together.

Peter Brown worked as a caretaker at the flats, called Buckrose court.

He was sent to prison for manslaughter last year after

starting the fire. I don't know who's done it or

what's happened, but it was not me. But Inside Out has discovered that

the North Yorkshire Fire Authority is still investigating what

happened that night more than two years later. But the question is

why? I've travelled to Scotland to meet

Marg wet Rhyl son, whose daughter Jan died at buck rose court. This

rose is called Haydock parbgs where Jan had her first win for us --

Haydock Park. I meet Margaret at the local church where together

with friends and family, she's created a special memorial garden

for her daughter. I don't really have to go any place to think about

her. I would say there's no minute of the day that she's not thought

about. I believe it was about 2.15 in the morning when our pagers went

off. At that point, you just leg it and get to the fire station as

quickly as you can. There was a young girl, she was running around

hysterically as if something had happened and she shouted "fire,

fire, so I "so I ran down to where it was, I couldn't see any flames

at the time. Peter Brown started the fire in the stairwell of the

flats and it went up very quickly, blocking the main means of escape

for those trapped inside. That's when the flames started to

get intense and you could see like a big blue flame, obviously a gas

fire, then the windows started to crack and the frames fell out.

When we got to the stairwell, there was no doubt in our minds that we

shouldn't step on to it. It was clearly very, very unsafe. It was

just smoke and flames. Many of the people living in the

flats jumped from the windows to escape. Jamie and Jan were both in

flat 5 on the second floor which was overcome by fire and they never

made it out. The firefighters who were at the

scene, we did, to the last man, everything we could have done in

that terrible situation. As we came round the corner, there was no

doubt in my mind that if there was anyone in that fire, they were

already deceased. There was no chance anyone could have survived

that. The man who deliberately started the fire, Peter Brown, was

sent to prison last year for the manslaughter of Jan and Jamie, but

for Marg rets Wilson, that's by no means the end of the matter --

Margaret Wilson. I think that shrub mystery fire is

very well named. We are now two years this weekend and I still

haven't got a lot of questions answered about that night.

Margaret contacted me after she discovered that the North Yorkshire

Fire Authority were still investigating the Norton fire. It

seemed that the building, which had been converted to flats three years

earlier, may not have complied with fire safety regulations.

People have not done things for the safety of that building. I think

they're worse than Peter Brown because they're worse than him.

So we decided to ask the North Yorkshire Fire Authority what was

going on. We sent a Freedom of Information request about the fire

at buck rose court and what we discovered made shocking reading --

buck rose court. In this letter from North Yorkshire building

control to the approved inspector at buck rose court, they say the

building has "deviations" from fire safety guidance. Before a block of

flats can be occupied the owners need to obtain what is called a

final certificate confirming that it complies with safety legislation.

JHA innovation issued the certificate but without consulting

the Fire Authority which they are legally obliged to do. We asked a

fire safety expert how serious this breach was. I would say that was a

significant omission on the part of the approved inspector. One might

reasonably argue that the Fire Service would certainly not have

overlooked the facilities for firefighting. So what were the

issues for the firefighting facilitys? Well, firstly the

building had no access for emergency vehicles and was near Le

double the recommended distance from the nearest road.

I'm surprised the approved inspector who dealt with the

approval under the building regulations didn't require

compensatory measures for the distance between the fire appliance

and the block. You could think about putting in a sprinkler system

or install a dry rising main. A dry pipe could obtain water at any

landing level within the flats. JHAI told the BBC that their

sympathies were with the families of those who died and they would

always accepted they made an error in not consultlinging the Fire

Authority. However, they said the approved design did comply with

building regulations and pointed out that it was a deliberate act of

arson that caused the fire. Howard Keal was on the planning committee

which passed the plans. He's very concerned that the issue was not

explored thoroughly enough at the time. If those issues had been

identified when this came to the committee, then there is no

question in my mind whatsoever that those would have been made

conditions and requirements of any approval. Those issues were not

brought to the attention of the committee. Of greater concern from

Jan and Jamie's point of view were the problems inside the building.

All the doors to the flats were fire resistent and supposed to be

self-closing, but the door to flat 5 was faulty and remained open,

engulfing the flat in flames and smoke. With the self-closing doors,

how significant would you say it is that it didn't work? A very major

factor I would have expected in the circumstances of the fire and the

deaths that occurred. The occupants of the flat would have been safe

for a prolonged period of time because the door was designed to be

a fire resisting door, able to withstand fire for 30 minutes or

more. The fire investigation report

mentions what it calls "combustible materials" being stored in the

stairwell. These turned out to be kitchen unit carcasses which were

piled up at the bottom of the stairs. It's that kind of materials

that the Fire Brigade use to demonstrate how quickly a fire can

develop. Basically, within two minutes of them see setting the

units on fire, there was a really well developed fire.

It was similar material that it was in the stairwell, I can fully

understand why the fire developed so quickly.

That's a significant contravention of fire safety legislation. The

fire itself arguably could have been prevented had there not been

combustible materials within the stairwell and if there was no fire,

then clearly there would have been no fatalities. We wrote to Alan who

represents the companies who own and manage the building. He told us

he is working closely with the Fire Authority but that as legal

prosealedings are pending, it would be inappropriate to comment further

at this time -- legal proceedings. It's been more than two years since

Jamie and Jan died at buck rose court and their families are still

awaiting the Fire Authority's decision whether any further action

will be taken. I want to know how my daughter didn't get out, how was

she meant to get out of that flat? My daughter was screaming at the

window for help and it's the only way I can help her now, is to, you

know, stop this happening to somebody else. If there's anybody

the blame, they need sorting out. Buck rose court has been renovated

but remains empty and under a prohibition notice from the Fire

Authority who say they're carrying out an investigation which could

result in criminal proceedings -- buck rose.

Coming up: Little front: The French airmen who flew sorties against

Nazi Germany from a Yorkshire airfield.

Every year, millions of us visit the seaside and here in Bridlington,

they have a team of dedicated lifeguards who work throughout the

summer to keep us all safe. We sent Keeley Donovan to find out just

what it takes to become a lifeguard. Here come the lifeguards. Keeping

us safe when we are on the beach or out at sea. On the East Coast,

they've dealt with more than 400 incidents this summer.

I'm not the world's greatest swimmer, but I've been given the

chance to train as a lifeguard. Let's see if I've got what it takes.

I'm in Bridlington, one of our biggest beaches. When the sun

shines, this place is packed and help is always at hand. I'm joining

the lifeguards who spend the summer making sure holiday-makers stay

safe and sound. Helen Peterson and Ryan Hepworth are lifeguards on

Bridlington's south beach, which stretchs from the harbour, all the

way south to FraisThorpe. What is a typical day for you? We are here

10-6 all day, preventing accidents before they happen and making sure

everyone is safe and having a fun day. What is in store for me?

going to teach you how we enter the water, approach the casualty, bring

them back into shore and carry them. We are going to teach you a lift

that we use. I've got the gear. Let's get

started. Now I'm beginning to look like a lifeguard, time for some

training. We are going to teach you how to do an unconscious tube

rescue. This is the rescue tube that all the lifeguards carry. If

you want to have a feel of it, it's nice and light. That gives the

buoyancy to the casualty. We have a rope here. Pull on here and throw

the thing behind it. When we are ready to go, we can put it on our

shoulder, drag it behind us, then we are ready to reach the casualty.

It's getting tougher. Another lifeguard, Jen Robinson, is

pretending to be a swimmer who needs help.

Swing your bum in. Here you go. Ready, steady, walk. Down to one

knee. Lower. That's it. If you take her hands. You will Ned to take all

her weight. As we lower her -- that's it. Fantastic. It's

strenuous. I don't know how I'm going to do that in the water. I

need to get into the water and there's a special way of dog this,

right? We do a thing called chicken legs which is how we run into the

water without catching our feet on the water and tripping over

basically. OK. I'll do a very quick demonstration to start with. It's

really just running but keeping your knees high, so run along, lift

the knees out the water like so. Here goes. This is the fastest way

to run across shallow water, it just looks a little silly. On the

beach, even in shallow water, conditions can be deceptive.

Let these guys know that the safest places to swim are between the red

flags. Most incidents are painful but routine. This girl's sprained

her ankle. A boy's cut his finger on a piece of glass. This little

boy needs to be brought back after drifting out to sea.

Make sure you stay between the red and yellow flags and try not to go

that far out. If you can't touch the floor, come back in towards the

beach. Back to the training and I have a confession. I've never swum

in the North Sea before, but now I've got to dive in. You have done

your chicken legs at knee depth, then you will use the dolphin dives

to get you through the next part of water until you get to a point

where you can swim. Does the head go under the water? Yes. You are

jumping off the side, diving through the wave, hitting the sand

again, your hands are in front so that hits the ground first, then

pull on the ground to bring your legs through ready to push up for

the next one. Ryan shows me how it should be done. It's not as - easy

as it looks. Do you want to do this together. Breathe through your nose.

Ready? Yes. We are off. I don't know about Helen and Ryan, but I'm

Dolphin dives, but that was more like a belly flop!

We have done the training and I've been in the water, now I'm going to

try and rescue someone. Can you hear me? Jen is pretending to be a

holiday-maker in trouble. It's up to me to help her. I'm checking

whether she's breathing and she is. So now I'm going to try and swim

her back to shore. Now comes the final task to get the casualty out

of the water. We've got to pick her up and try not to drop her. We are

spreading the weight on both our shoulders. It takes balance and a

fair bit of strength. Down to one knee. Lower. It was my

first attempt! I think I need a little more practise. I'm a

terrible lifeguard! So how do you think I did? Could I

be a potential lifeguard? You've grasped the basics quickly. You

need to work on your dolphin diving a little more and it obviously

takes a lot of training to get your fitness up. If you are prepared to

put in the hours on your fitness, you never know. A diplomatic

answer! Everyone gets worried when a child

might have gone into the sea. Today, there's an alert on the beach. A

seven-year-old girl's gone missing. As a search begins, lifeguard Jen

joins the girl's father on the beach.

This gentleman's lost his little girl, so we have got all the

lifeguards out looking for them, someone on the quad bike, someone

in the patrol zone looking for her, someone doing base obs and we are

going to wander on the sand, see if we can find her. The father is

getting concerned. It's 15 minutes since he last saw her. We seem to

have searched the majority of the water. So I reckon getting the

police involved is a good idea, over. Running toward the water last

time you saw her? She's been missing half an hour and the search

intensifies. I'm with the faur by the Spa with some of the police

officers -- father. Waiting for the coastguard, then they're going to

organise a proper search along the beach. Over. The father thinks he

might have spotted her. But it turns out to be a false alarm. Jen

gets some new information from the missing girl's brother and it

sounds worrying. The little boy, his son, was the

last person to be with the missing child and his dad said, was she in

the water and he said yes and he said what happened to her and his

response, because he's only four was, she disappeared like magic, so

I don't know whether she's gone into the sea.

It's an hour since the missing girl disappeared. Everyone's getting

increasingly concerned. It's a huge beach and crowded with people, but

so far, the seven-year-old seems to have vanished without a trace.

Finally, after two hours, it sounds like good news. As you look at the

beach, as far as you can see, Fraisthorpe beach, the child was

found by a farmer up there. They contacted the coastguard, they've

just got down there and confirmed that it was the missing child, so

they're sending the parents down now. Thankfully, this time, there's

a happy ending. For all of us, it's been another busy day at the

seaside. More than 65 years ago, thousands

of bombing raids were launched against Nazi Germany from an

airstrip outside of York. But what makes this story different is that

it wasn't the RAF but two squadrons of French airmen. Lucy Hester has

unearthed some footage of the men, never been seen before.

Europe 1940 and the full force of the German third Reich is unleashed.

It faces overwhelming fire power. Within weeks Paris has fallen and

France surrenders. The world held its breath as the allies teetered

on the brink of catastrophe, but out of the chaos, some French

forces made it to England. 2,500 of them took the fight back to Germany

from right here at Elvington. Elvington had been home to an RAF

bomber squadron, but when they moved out, the French moved in. It

became known as La Petite France. This bit of Yorkshire became a

central part of the campaign to Elvington is now home to the

Yorkshire air museum, but towards the end of the Second World War,

two French squadrons of Halifax bombers were based here. They

launched wave after wave of attacks against the German military machine.

It It meant that they were able to fight back for really the first

time since the Germans had invaded France. It's been said that bomber

command didn't win the war, but without bomber command, the war

wouldn't have been won. I suppose the missions that they had to

undertake meant that the French bomber squadrons were actually

bombing their own country? Yes. One of the very first missions by the

squadron was to bomb the gunning placements on the Normandy beach

head. They wouldn't know why they were doing that. They knew the

target was in France, which must have been quite significant for

them being one of their first missions.-Lucian Mallia was a

Halifax rear gunner and he remembers the night the German

fighters took their revenge. were shot down by German fighters.

They sneaked into England in the midst of a group of bombers. As we

couldn't see each other at night, to avoid the radars, they returned

with us. On each air base, there were two

German fighters and each time we tried to land, they machine gunned

us. We were shot down like that. So we suffered two fighter attacks and

there we caught fire and crashed. The plane on fire. That's my

recollection. By the time of the D-Day landings

in 1944, the French airmen and their crew were a common sight in

York. Here at Betty's tearoom, the men scratched their names in the

mirror. For some girls, a French man in uniform was very difficult

to resist. Many a young woman fell for Gallic

charm, swept off their feet but a handsome young man. One of them was

Freda who was still at school when she met a dashing French aviator.

How old were you when you met Maurice? 17. He was 27. Maurice was

a flight engineer on a Halifax bomber. This is his crew. Maurice

landed in Freda's life when he came to her house to spend Christmas

with her family. Eventually by about 3 o'clock on Christmas Day, a

knock on the door. I went and of course I saw this oh, this

Frenchman standing there in uniform. Oh, the uniform, oh. I just cracked

at the uniform. We went out and played snowball and one of course

hit me and then he put one down my neck and that was the first kiss.

He put snow down my neck. And that started it off.

Freda and Maurice's relationship continued, but the conflict proved

a reality check, why get too close when the survival rate for airmen

was so poor. The attrition rate in these planes

was terrible. 50% of the French bomber crews never made it home and

dozens more were captured after being shot down. But despite the

heavy losses, their determination to take the battle to Germany

remained undiminished. It was night-time and there was no

communications between planes. The only thing that they could do was

hope that the wings did not touch some other wings or something

wouldn't happen from above. Then started the anti-aircraft guns and

also the fighters. They were coming back and they were often pursued by

the fighters. So, of course, this was very dangerous.

The cinema at Elvington air museum, some extraordinary forgotten

footage of the French bomber crews who flew from here.

This film lay undiscovered in an archive for years and has never

been shown before. Part of the propaganda war by the exiled French

government, it's the work of a film crew which followed the airmen of

Elvington into action. It's in French so it's obviously aimed at

the French public. Lots of politics, I mean we have no experience of

modern times of our country being occupied by a foreign power. They

were trying to show that their own people fought to save France and to

liberate France and sacrificed their lives for the general

liberation of Europe. I suppose some of the men that we

see in this film wouldn't have survived the war at all? No. There

are very few films of this nature actually a day in the life we

actually go out on the mission and come back with them and a black

cloud appears and it's an entire aircraft gone in one shot, seven

crew. Disintegrated in a minute. Those

were people they probably just had breakfast with. It's not a

nationalistic thing under any circumstances, it's a job they had

to do in order to free their country.

At the end of the war, the French crews left Elvington to flay to

liberated France, and that ris left too. It seemed that would be the

end of the row main -- Maurice left too. It seemed that would be the

end of the romance. I decided to hang on even though my mother said

there were more pebbles on the beach. From meeting him to being

married, we waited five years. Freda and Maurice were married for

the best part of three years, raising three children. Maurice

died 13 years ago, but for Freda, their marriage proved that in the

worst of times, good things can happen. Back in Elvington, text

ploits of the French bomber crews haven't been forgotten -- exploits.

The top brass of the French and military will make their way to

York, they will come to mark the day that the French crews left

Elvington for good. Time has thinned the numbers of foreign

airmen who were proud to call Elvington their home. A few of the

survivors will return this week to mark a small chapter of World War

II history and this piece of Yorkshire -- when this piece of

Yorkshire became a key part of the battle to liberate France.