Rugby Club bonfire

[nearlythere]

Does anyone have reference to any follow up to the Taunton Rugby Club bonfire which reportedly was the cause of the RTC on the M5 near the venue a couple of years ago?

[Tom Sutton]

Check out http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Somerset-M5-crash-Taunton-RFC-fireworks-display/story-15497029-detail/story.html#axzz2dGprYwtS

[Dinnertime Dave]

The trial has started this week -

http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/uk-news/2013/11/18/man-denies-safety-breach-charge/

[Dinnertime Dave]

Not Guilty.

Thrown out at half time.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25316055

[nearlythere]

Very strange outcome. I thought this guy was going to do some serious time.

"He (the judge) said the prosecution's case was "heavily weighted" on "hindsight" and there was not sufficient evidence to show that Mr Counsell ought to have foreseen that smoke from the display could have drifted and mixed with fog to create thick smog.

I would have thought a fire risk assessment would have included an assessment of the effects that various weather conditions would have on large quantities of smoke especially near a road.

I had submitted a tender for a bonfire fire display in Derry for the Luminiere event and one of the main things on my mind was just that. Anyway the tender went elsewhere.

[Dinnertime Dave]

I agree, doesn't it come down to competency or is what a reasonable risk assessment would consider. In this case my experience would say that if I was holding an event near to a motorway I would have to consider where the smoke would go and the weather conditions.

What none of us have done though is sit through the trial and listened to the prosecutions evidence.

[wee brian]

I seem to remember that putting smoke onto a highway was an offence under the highways act.

To be fair, its a question of proportionality. Most bonfires are not going to be big enough to make any real difference. But how big is too big - I've no idea.

[colin todd]

Wee B, one day there will be a bonfire of all rubbish guidance produced by DCLG (apart from ADB, which is really cool) and the bonfire will be so big rivers will not quench it.

[Dinnertime Dave]

Wee B, one day there will be a bonfire of all rubbish guidance produced by DCLG (apart from ADB, which is really cool) and the bonfire will be so big rivers will not quench it.

That will be another Christmas Island. Where can we burn all this stuff away from civilisation? Now let me think. Any suggestions Colin?

[colin todd]

The West Midlands?

[BLEVE]

Hindsight is 20/20
Very few FRA would consider weather stability (pasquill stability class) and wind speed vs effect on smoke plume prior to this incident.

With hind sight more likely now of course.

[nearlythere]

I think they would Bleve.

[BLEVE]

I would qualify that I doubt that the majority of spoof merchants would

[BLEVE]

Even if the competent did. It would be interesting to see the predicted extent of fire plume given heat release rate and surface area of a bonfire during a number of weather conditions. Let us not forget that typical modeling only takes into account D5 and F2 conditions. From memory the conditions during the incident were foggy with no wind speed.