Dewsbury business owner despairs over torched caravan

A Dewsbury business owner has described his frustration after an abandoned caravan dumped outside his premises was torched this weekend.
Jamie Skinner has asked for the remains of a burnt caravan to be moved from outside his business.Jamie Skinner has asked for the remains of a burnt caravan to be moved from outside his business.
Jamie Skinner has asked for the remains of a burnt caravan to be moved from outside his business.

Jamie Skinner, who runs Howarth Timber & Building Supplies on Hirst Road, asked for the caravan to be removed by Kirklees Council.

He says he was told the matter would be resolved, but a month later the vehicle was still there, with people having thrown rubbish and waste inside.

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The caravan is now a pile of ash after it was set on fire sometime this weekend.

Jamie, 36, has fears over the affect it continues to have on his business.

He said: “It’s just unsightly and it’s restricting our trade. It is completely unsafe, too.

“A couple of years ago a lady died when a car rolled down and hit her on this street. You can’t tell me a caravan just left there on bricks is safe for anyone. It could’ve killed someone.

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“We’re open for business and we’re trying to attract customers. If I drove past here I would just keep on driving. It looks like some sort of war-torn country.

“Even before it was set alight it was just an awful thing to have laying there outside your business. It got to the stage where people were just throwing rubbish into it. It stunk.

“You don’t want that to be the thing that people see when they come to us. It can’t have been good for business at all.”

Today Kirklees Council said that plans were being made to remove the mess.

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Karl Battersby, Strategic Director Economy and Infrastructure said: “The Council had served notice on the illegally dumped caravan, saying that it would be removed after legal requirement of 15 days’ notice.

"Before the 15 days had passed it was burnt out.

"This is now an absolute eyesore and is blocking part of the highway, so we have now made arrangements for the remaining material to be removed, and the highway cleaned as soon as possible."