of a delivery of hard-to-obtain saucepans generated huge crowds, many of whom were queueing outside the store at the time of the rocket's impact. Planning and economic restrictions after the war meant Woolworths did not build a replacement store on the site until 1960; this closed in 1984. It was reported that some employees there felt the building was haunted. Lewisham Council and Woolworths erected a plaque on the site commemorating those who died that day. There is now an Iceland store on the site. Fire safety During the period from 1971 to 1981 a series of fires occurred in Woolworths premises which brought into sharp focus the company's complacent attitude towards fire safety, a policy which culminated in a number of fatalities. Central Warehouse, Rochdale On 6 May 1971, a fire broke out at the main distribution depot at Rochdale, Lancashire. The site was split into three sections, along with an administration block that housed the company’s new mainframe computer system and all stock and accounting records. The fire soon spread owing to the failure of the sprinkler system; this led to administration staff frantically dis-assembling the computer and passing parts of it, along with stock cards and other records, out of windows onto waiting lorries. Over 100 fire fighters attended the blaze and they managed to save two-thirds of the building with no loss of life. The resultant insurance payout of £3m was the highest of its kind in the north-west of England at that time. High Street, Colchester On 2 October 1973, a fire broke out in the stockroom of the store at 40-50 High Street, Colchester. The blaze soon spread to the rest of the store and the building was totally destroyed. Although all customers and staff were evacuated, subsequent findings blamed a lack of a sprinkler system (which was not, and still is not, a legal requirement) and poor procedures in place for staff to deal with fires and evacuations. Central Manchester A fire erupted just after 1pm on 8 May 1979 at the Manchester store opposite Piccadilly Gardens, said at the time to be the largest Woolworths in Europe, with six floors plus two basement levels. The fire, which started in the second floor furnishing department, killed 10 shoppers and one member of staff; of whom three were found just six feet away from an exit with another three bodies nearby. Of the 12