Rejection of new Summerland fire inquest contested

Fire tore through the Summerland complex on the evening of 2 August 1973

A formal appeal process against the rejection of a bid for fresh inquests into the deaths of 50 people killed in the Summerland fire disaster has begun.

The Isle of Man's Attorney General has been "formally put on notice of judicial review proceedings" by a human rights law firm acting for a campaign group made up of survivors and relatives.

The fire ripped through the entertainment complex on Douglas Promenade on 2 August 1973.

A bid made by Belfast-based Phoenix Law, on behalf of the Justice for Summerland group, to have the original misadventure verdicts overturned was rejected in May.

A spokesman for the Attorney General's Chambers confirmed the letter had been received and was being considered.

Rejecting the application in May, the Attorney General said the firm's application had offered "no fresh evidence revealing any relevant or material errors or misunderstanding" in the original investigation in 1974.

Misinterpretation claim

The law firm said its latest letter was part of the legal protocol ahead of the lodging of a Petition of Doleance.

It said in making the decision to throw out its original request the Attorney General had used an "unlawfully high threshold for ordering fresh inquests" based on the law in England and Wales, which did not apply on the island.

The letter said he had "misinterpreted the meaning of misadventure in coronial law", and "failed to give proper consideration to the advancement of forensic science".

It claimed the refusal had contravened "the state's obligations under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, including the duty to investigate where new evidence arises".

The firm said if no reply was received before 17:00 BST on 11 August it would issue judicial review proceedings in the High Court.

There were about 3,000 people inside the Summerland complex, which was one of the largest entertainment complexes of its kind in Europe at the time, when the blaze started.

Saturday saw memorial services held in Douglas to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of the tragedy.

An exhibition telling the history of the site, from Victorian times to the aftermath of the devastating fire, is on display at the Villa Marina Arcade until Saturday.