Fatal Accident

This report aims to provide a summary of the fire at Paul’s Hair and Beauty World, Oldham Street, Manchester, which broke out on Saturday, July 13, 2013, and tragically claimed the life of Firefighter Stephen Hunt.

Stephen was a proud and valued part of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS). He was a professional Firefighter and hero who was a much loved member of Blue Watch at Philips Park Community Fire Station. He made the ultimate sacrifice in service and his loss was felt widely throughout the organisation, as well as the fire and rescue service community across the world.

GMFRS remains utterly devastated by Stephen’s death but at the heart of every investigation into this complex incident is a family which has lost a son, brother, dad, uncle and friend. 

We cannot bring Stephen back or turn back time to change the sequence of events that led to his death, as much as we would give everything that we have to do so. We can however be open and transparent about what happened, what didn’t happen that should have and what now needs to change to ensure anything similar never happens again.

Fatal Accident Investigation Report: Oldham Street, July 2013 (PDF, 3MB)