Oyez! O-yikes! Store blaze gives town crier something to shout about

Wearing his tri-cornered hat, ringing his bell and shouting “Oyez! Oyez! Fire! Fire!” the 50-year-old, jumped into action after seeing smoke and flames rising from an enclosed area by the side of a Co-op store on Saturday morning.

Mr Booth was in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, for a Morris dance festival. He rang his first cry at 11am and spotted the danger 15 minutes later.

Managing director Mr Booth said: “One of the Morris dancers alerted me and I went over to take a look. Just as I got there the manager popped his head out and it was the first time he had seen the fire, he went back inside and pushed the alarm and that’s when I thought I needed to help.

“I went round the staff area ringing my bell saying ‘fire and fire’ telling them to get out. Then I cleared the post office, shouting ‘Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! Fire! Fire! Fire!, ringing the bell all the time.

“I cleared one staff member from the post office and then went to the top of each aisle clearing people – at one point I was wheeling a baby out with her pram. It was beginning to clear quite well.”

Mr Booth, from Horbury, near Wakefield, said he suspected there may have been gas bottles in the area of the blaze.

“I got everyone out in less than a minute, probably 50 people altogether including staff,” he said.

Following the drama the chief incident officer from the Fire Service approached Mr Booth and told the civic hero he was going to put him up for a fire service award.

Helen Seed, spokesperson for The Co-operative Food, said: “An electrical fault caused a fire at the rear of our Huddersfield Road store at around noon on Saturday June 8.

“All customers and staff were immediately evacuated from the building, and no one was hurt.

Ms Seed thanked Mr Booth for his efforts.