The commotion across the bridge had drawn Bill and his mates out of the Golden Lion that evening. There was a fire in the Whitby Gazette press office, someone had shouted and in a matter of seconds the pub had emptied. They could see the smoke already billowing above the houses. Flames were visible from upper windows above the crowd. That fire was spreading fast.

With drink still in hand, the men made their way across the bridge to watch the spectacle. Bill's slightly inebriated mind did not consider that Joe had joined the fire brigade and would be called upon until he had pushed his way to the front of the crowd and saw his youngest son don a helmet and disappear inside the burning building. "Joe!" he called out and he tried to push through the police cordon helpfully.