The more I heard at the Arena inquiry, the more it reminded me of Hillsborough - writes Judith Moritz
In Manchester - British Transport Police , Greater Manchester Police, North West Ambulance Service and Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service were supposed to work together on a joint planned response to an emergency through a local "resilience forum", with meetings every six months.
At Hillsborough, ambulances lined up outside the ground, but only one South Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service vehicle was allowed onto the pitch with only one paramedic at the Leppings Lane end. "Something as basic as stretchers in both Hillsborough and the Arena. People who were very, very severely injured and in some cases died, were carried out on advertising hoardings in both cases, 30 years apart. There has to be a rethink here".At Hillsborough, the police radio systems failed and officers outside the ground could not hear instructions or communicate. There was a failure to get through to the police control room.
When the bomb exploded at the end of the concert, the three of them were in the arena's foyer. Andrew and his son Xander had been waiting outside nearby to collect them - and were quickly at the scene. But although they found Ashlee straight away, they couldn't find Lisa or Saffie.The pair walked round and round the perimeter of the arena, leaving their details with police officers and asking for help.
That's why, in 2014, the new Hillsborough inquests in Warrington began with a "pen portraits" process - with every bereaved family invited to speak in court about their loved ones' lives and characters. The experience was seen as positive, and has since been used elsewhere, including at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
She says using her lived experiences to help others, who aren't legally core participants, is her way of "paying it forward".
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