It was a scene we didn't want to see in our working city of Manchester - the streets paved with glass, shops burnt out and goods looted during the riots on Tuesday 9th August 2011. We all watched, from the comfort of our Sofas, on the news channels as the violence spread throughout our city. This was where we spent at least 5 days a week, helping students and graduates to set up businesses. To watch as established businesses were trashed and brought tumbling down in a matter of minutes was heart breaking.
Quickly the e-mails and the text messages were exchanged as we all volunteered to join the @RiotCleanUp already organised for Manchester the following morning.
The extent of the damage could be seen from the moment we turned into Chorlton Street. The City College walls were adorned with graffiti and the small glass blocks on the front of our building had been smashed. We borrowed some brooms from Steve in House Services and set off to meet the others with their big tongs in Piccadilly Gardens.
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Jennie & Lucy show off their riot clean up skills.
Slightly dodgy photography by Laura |
After a pep talk from the organisers and many local councillors we set off on a tour of the damage and swept up any broken glass we found on the way. The council had done a fantastic job of clearing up over night which left us with little to do until we approached the probation office at the end of canal street. The streets were covered in glass and we joined a lone man in his mission to clean it up.
We had done all that we could and returned to our desks still wondering what the looters were going to do with just one trainer from the display they had stolen. But still we did everything that we could, even if it was just a small donation of time.
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