THE MAN behind the Stoke Prior Steam Rally has hit out at media coverage of a fire which happened during the event, claiming the incident had been blown out of all proportion.
Keith Shakespeare criticised the story in another local newspaper which he said made the blaze during the event at Little Intall Fields, Stoke Pound Lane, on Saturday (September 13) sound much worse than it was.
It happened when a fire started in a touring caravan and spread to a second one.
One man who contacted The Standard said the fire spread rapidly and claimed no one seemed to be taking control of the situation.
“This could have been a lot worse.
“An aerosol can flew from the burning blaze just past my daughter and into a tent which had two terrified young children in it.
“Eventually the drama was under control but the outcome was very lucky.”
But Mr Shakespeare said: “The picture looked very dramatic, but our staff were on the ball straight away.
“Fire extinguishers were deployed and water was also used on the fire before the fire service got there.”
Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service confirmed a call had been made at 11.43am and two fire engines from Bromsgrove Fire Station had been sent to the scene.
They used hoses and breathing aparatus to extinguish the blaze and everything was out by 12.14pm.
They said the two caravans were destroyed.
Mr Shakespeare added the fire service were happy with the way it was dealt with.
“They asked why we didn’t do a risk assessment specifically for fire, but they accepted one had been done as part of the overall risk assessment.
“They went away and came back hours later to check everything was okay, which it was,” he said.
