A statement has been issued addressing a chemical spill in Trafford Park that triggered a major incident to be declared.
A massive emergency services response was scrambled to the area on Monday morning, and residents and businesses in Trafford Park and the surrounding areas were told to keep keep all doors and windows shut.
Lanxess, a specialty chemical company with a plant on Tenax Road, confirmed that the spillage occurred during the unloading of a tanker truck.
The company has also confirmed that a full investigation will take place.
The chemical spill triggered a 300m cordon around the scene in Trafford Park until the Major Incident was de-escalated yesterday afternoon.
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One person, believed to be a worker at the plant, was taken to hospital as a precaution.
A spokesperson for North West Ambulance Service confirmed that the risk to the public was low, but issued some symptoms to watch out for.
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They said: “If anyone in the local area suffers symptoms including breathlessness, wheezing or bluing of the lips and fingers, you are advised to seek medical help via NHS 111 online – 111.nhs.uk.”
Lanxess has now issued a statement addressing yesterday’s chemical spill incident in Trafford.
A spokesperson said: “Specialty chemicals company LANXESS has begun the investigation of today’s incident at the site in Trafford Park, Manchester, thoroughly. At around 9 o’clock this morning, a chemical spilled during the unloading of a tanker truck.
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“Emergency services arrived at the site shortly after to work with the site and contain the spillage. The leak was contained and stopped by late morning.
“To ensure safety of all employees, the site was evacuated. One person was taken to hospital for observation as a precaution. The cooperation with emergency services and authorities went smoothly.”
A spokesperson for NWAS said: “We can confirm that we have deescalated from a Major Incident after a chemical leak at an industrial site on Tenax Road, Trafford Park, Manchester.
“Resources were scaled back to support the ongoing operation by Greater Manchester Police and Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service however, the incident has now closed down with all NWAS resources leaving site.
“Our protocols require us to deploy enough vehicles to support a large-scale incident; fortunately, they weren’t required on this occasion. One patient has been taken to hospital for further assessment.
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“The risk to the public from the leak has been determined to be low; however, if anyone in the local area suffers symptoms including breathlessness, wheezing or bluing of the lips and fingers, you are advised to seek medical help via NHS 111 online – 111.nhs.uk.
“We want to thank the local community for their patience while emergency services continue to deal with the situation.”
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Work finally begins on site of UK’s first majority LGBTQ+ housing scheme in Manchester
Work has finally got underway on the start of the UK’s first majority LGBTQ+ housing scheme here in Manchester.
The exciting new £37 million flagship development – which is being built on the site of the former Spire Hospital on Russell Road, in the Whalley Range area of Manchester – will be comprised of 80 one and two-bedroom apartments for older people over the age of 55 for social rent, alongside an additional 40 affordable shared ownership apartments.
Plans for the scheme have been co-produced in partnership with the Russell Road Community Steering Group, Manchester City Council, and the LGBT Foundation.
Delivered in partnership with contractors Rowlinson, and funded through Great Places, the Homes England Strategic Partnership, GMCA Brownfield Housing Fund, and Manchester City Council, the high-quality and sustainable building will offer a ‘safe and welcome feel’ with an ‘inviting presence’.
While the goal is to create an inclusive space, the scheme has also been designed to respect the surrounding conservation area.
On top of this, the low carbon scheme will also feature shared communal facilities including lounges, treatment rooms, and landscaped gardens.
The Council says the new scheme is part of its ambitious target to deliver at least 36,000 new homes across the city region by 2032 – at least 10,000, of which, will be social rent, Council, or considered ‘genuinely affordable’ housing.
It comes after more than 800 ‘Extra Care’ homes have been built in Manchester in recent years, and are another 1,000 are in the pipeline – to meet the demand for older people in the city.
A CGI of the newly-approved LGBTQ+ Extra Care housing scheme development in Whalley Range / Credit: Manchester City Council
“This is a real milestone moment for this development,” commented Cllr Gavin White, who is the Executive Member for Housing and Development at Manchester City Council.
“The Council has believed in the positive impact an LGBTQ+ majority housing development could have for this community for many years, and to celebrate the social rent homes officially starting on site is a great moment for the city.
“Working with the LGBT Foundation, we know that older LGBTQ+ people worry about being able to access appropriate and inclusive housing later in life. Although we hope all older person’s accommodation is welcoming to everyone, this scheme will provide safe, secure and affordable housing for LGBTQ+ people to live with dignity.
“We look forward to the completion of these homes that will complement and enhance this part of Whalley Range, and be an important part of this community.”
The project is scheduled to be completed in Summer 2027.
Featured Image – Manchester City Council
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Parklife shares statement after festival’s brand-new stage closed down before headliners
Parklife has released a full statement after the festival was forced to close its newest stage, and cancel two headline performances.
The huge Heaton Park festival had been running smoothly all weekend, with blistering performances from 50 Cent, Pawsa, Jorja Smith and plenty more.
But on Sunday, local lad and rising star DJ Josh Baker took to the brand-new Matinee stage to enormous crowds.
Although Parklife installed a queue system to manage numbers inside the enclosed festival stage, the crowds outside became very large, very quickly, and the decision was made to shut the stage down for everyone’s safety.
Several people have shared videos on TikTok, like the one below, that show the scenes around the Matinee stage and audiences being told the area would need to be evacuated.
The stage was shut down for the remainder of the evening, meaning a headline performance from Chris Stussy was also cancelled.
Parklife has said this decision was taken to ‘remove the risk of any potential incidents’ and to prioritise the safety of festival attendees.
Josh Baker told fans: “I deeply apologise. I can’t really put into words what today was going to mean to me.”
Chris Stussy said in a statement on his Instagram: “Really gutted I’m unable to perform at Parklife tonight, flew straight from Barcelona to play a 3 hours closing set but due to safety reasons and the stage being over crowded, the organisation decided to shut the stage down as it may have caused unsafe situations for those who were there.
“Despite being disappointed, safety comes first and we will make this right very soon.”
Parklife hasn’t publicly addressed the incident but has shared this statement: “As a result of crowd movement at the Matinee Stage and on the advice of our safety team to remove the risk of any potential incidents, Parklife made the decision to close the stage for the remainder of the final day of the festival.
“Unfortunately it has been impossible to relocate Josh Baker’s and Chris Stussy’s performances to a new stage.
“Our teams worked quickly and diligently to address the situation and the safety of our festival attendees is always our utmost priority.”
Daisy Jackson -
5th March 2024 
