Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service (GMFRS) has issued an urgent warning after two fires break out in the city centre within the space of an hour.
Both incidents happened on the balconies of Manchester city centre apartments.
Firefighters were called to the first incident – which happened at a flat in a block on Ludgate Hill, in the Green Quarter area of the city centre – just before 9:30pm on Tuesday night, and was said to be the result of a disposable barbecue having been placed directly onto the wooden flooring of the balcony, causing a fire to start.
GMFRS said that crews managed to quickly extinguish the blaze and gave the flat’s residence fire safety advice.
The second incident happened at 11:02pm, where five fire engines and an aerial ladder platform attended a fire on the balcony of a second floor flat in Manchester – believed to be the Quantum Building, on Chapeltown Street in the Northern Quarter.
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The fire service confirmed that firefighters were at the scene for around 30 minutes.
☀ As we see some nice weather please be safe if you have a balcony.
👩🚒 Last night we attended two balcony fires in Manchester, one started by a BBQ.
❌ Never have a BBQ on a balcony and be careful with cigarettes if you smoke.
— Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service (@manchesterfire) March 31, 2021
It is suspected that the fire ignited wooden garden furniture on the balcony, and was caused by a “carelessly discarded cigarette”.
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“As we are experiencing some nicer weather in Greater Manchester, it is really important that residents of flats are aware of fire safety when they use their balconies.” Paul Duggan – Area Manager and GMFRS Head of Prevention – said.
“We were fortunate that there were no injuries at the incidents we attended yesterday and that we were able to quickly bring them under control and stop any further spread [but] this is a timely reminder that residents of flats should never have BBQs on their balconies and should be particularly careful on their balconies if they smoke.
“We want people to enjoy themselves at home when the weather is nice – but please do so carefully”.
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Yesterday’s two incidents come after GMFRS last year responded to a number of fires on balconies during the warm weather, with the most common cause of these fires being BBQs or people throwing cigarettes from buildings, which can even cause fires on someone else’s balcony.
Most-notably, a discarded cigarette caused a fire at the Lighthouse apartment building in the Northern Quarter last year, which spread across a number of balconies and resulted in the full evacuation of the building, and there has been various similar cases of fires reported around the country which also started on balconies and caused significant damage to buildings.
These incidents sometimes resulted in residents needing to move out.
The government has issued advice to building owners about the potential risks posed by wooden balconies, and in most buildings, the use of BBQs on balconies is not permitted and may be a breach of the lease or tenancy agreement.
GMFRS says that residents therefore have a responsibility to co-operate with the fire safety arrangements for the building.
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Residents could face action if they put other people in the building at risk.
In order to help keep residents of apartments blocks as safe as possible as we head into the warmer months, GMFRS has issued these safety precautions to reduce the risk of fire on a balcony:
Do not use BBQs under any circumstances.
Never store flammable materials like gas on your balcony.
Reduce clutter and try and keep items on the balcony to a minimum.
If you smoke, make sure you fully stub cigarettes out and NEVER flick them off your balcony.
Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of £2.5bn investment package
Emily Sergeant
It’s official… Stockport is finally getting trams.
It’s been a long time coming, so long, in fact, that rumours first began swirling all the way back in July 2022 when then Prime Minister Boris Johnson hinted at in PMQs, all before Mayor Andy Burnham insisted in October 2023 that he had ‘big ambitions’ to deliver the project once and for all, but now it’s finally been confirmed.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has today revealed that Stockport will be connected to the Metrolink tram network thanks to a £2.5 billion funding boost from the Government.
At this moment in time, Stockport is one of only a few boroughs in the region that’s not currently connected up to the expansive Metrolink network, but all of that is set to change very soon, as Greater Manchester is beginning the construction of the town’s very-first tram line.
It will help deliver:
🐝 Eight rail lines and 64 stations into the capped system by 2028
🐝 A new tram line to Stockport
🐝 A new tram-train service connecting Bury, Heywood, Rochdale and Oldham
While the intention for trams to eventually travel to and from the town has been known for quite some time now, there hasn’t been much talk of timelines or when this would actually become a reality.
For now, it seems there’s still no timelines as such, but at least there’s confirmation.
The confirmation that trams will be coming to Stockport forms part of a lineup of exciting transport announcements this week, all of which Andy Burnham has called a ‘game-changing moment’ that will ‘underpin Greater Manchester’s green growth’ for years to come.
Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of a £2.5 billion investment package / Credit: TfGM
Other announcements include the fact that Greater Manchester‘s Bee Network is to become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030, local rail lines will be brought into the Bee Network before the end of the decade, fully joining up bike, bus, tram, and train travel for the first time outside London, and the introduction of new electric buses, tram lines, tram stops, and transport interchanges.
North Manchester, Bury, and Oldham are the areas set to receive new Metrolink stops to support delivery of thousands of new homes, and Oldham, Rochdale, Heywood, and Bury will all be connected to each other via the Bee Network.
“Building on our strong track record, we can now move at pace to deliver the next phase of the Bee Network – creating the UK’s first fully electric, zero emission integrated public transport system by 2030,” commented Mayor Andy Burnham as the funding package was announced this week.
The Bee Network become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030 / Credit: TfGM
“With a pipeline of major transport projects better connecting our towns and cities, and local rail lines brought into the Bee Network, our communities will be the first outside London to be served by fully joined-up bike, bus, tram, and train travel.
“Greater Manchester has had a decade of growth faster than the UK average, and this funding can be the key to unlocking even more growth in the decade to come.
“It’s a major boost for our own plans to deliver £10bn of investment over the next 10 years, build thousands of new homes, create skilled jobs, and open up new opportunities right across our city-region.”
Featured Image – TfGM
News
Police still searching for answers six months after remains of baby girl found in Little Hulton park
Emily Sergeant
Six months on after the remains of a baby girl were found in a park in Little Hulton, police are still searching for answers.
It was on 20 November 2024 that Greater Manchester Police (GMP) received a call from a member of the public reporting the discovery of what appeared to be human remains in a park in the Little Hulton area of Salford – but it was only when officers and detectives attended the scene that they determinted the remains to be that of a baby girl.
At the time, police referred to the baby simply as ‘Baby A’, but it’s now be confirmed that they chose to name her Ava.
Since that day, a dedicated team from GMP’s Major Incident Team has worked ‘tirelessly’ to uncover the truth about who Baby Ava was and what led to her being left alone.
Detectives have followed up on hundreds of public tips, conducted thousands of hours of house-to-house enquiries, reviewed extensive CCTV footage, and collaborated with police forces and agencies across the country in pursuit of identifying who baby Ava was and securing justice for her… but as of yet, there are no answers.
Police are still searching for answers six months after the remains of a baby girl found in a Little Hulton park / Credit: Google Maps
Information from the public also led police to speak with potential witnesses nationwide, and time was also spent trawling the national missing person database, focusing on cases involving females who were potentially pregnant and reported missing, yet these were unsuccessful.
To this day, police continue to work closely with a range of experts.
Currently, a botanist is helping detectives determine how long Ava may have been at the discovery site, and work is continuing with an anthropologist, archaeologist, and specialists in dental and bone analysis to establish Ava’s age and ethnicity.
As investigations continue at a rapid pace, police have reissued their appeal to the public for information.
Police have since named the baby Ava as their search for answers continues / Credit: GMP
“We will never forget Baby Ava, and despite the challenges in the investigation, we’re committed to uncovering the truth,” commented Detective Chief Inspector Charlotte Whalley, from GMP’s Major Incident Team. “We are more determined than ever to find who Ava is, who her parents are, and all of the possible scenarios and circumstances which have led Ava to being separated from them.
“I know how heartbreaking this case has been for the communities of Greater Manchester and beyond. The support and compassion we’ve received has been unwavering, and we share the sadness felt for Ava as we continue our search for answers so that we can lay her to rest.
“If you are baby Ava’s mum, please know that you are not alone. You can contact us directly or ask someone you trust to reach out on your behalf. We want to help you.”
Anyone with any information that may be of assistance is asked to contact police on 101, quoting log 1319 of 20/11/24, or by heading to the Major Incident Public Portal here.
The Manc -
1st April 2021 
