The BBC Manchester radio car and a car belonging to a reporter have been destroyed during riots in Salford.
Local radio services across many parts of the UK tore up it schedules again last night to cover more violence and looting including in Birmingham, Nottingham, Manchester, Salford and Liverpool.
In Salford, a BBC Radio Manchester reporter had parked her own car alongside the radio car, some distance from the shopping precinct where trouble had broken out, when she and a colleague arrived to cover the story. But the crowd moved from the precinct and turned into the road.
A spokeswoman for the BBC told us: “Within minutes of leaving the car and standing by BBC Radio Manchester’s radio-car, bricks were hurled at both reporters. They were lucky not to get hit and were fortunate in being able to run around the corner where there was a line of police officers wearing riot gear.”
BBC Radio Manchester Managing Editor John Ryan told RadioToday.co.uk: “The loss of our radio car occurred quite early in the evening. The reporters attending were trained in this kind of situation and had bailed out as the crowd turned nasty. I was in the studio and heard the still transmitting car as it was turned over. It was a terrible night for Manchester and I’m only thankful my brilliant team stayed safe.”
Meanwhile BBC Radio Nottingham journalist Kevin Stanley broadcast on 5 Live after witnessing problems near his home in the city. We hear the BBC even helped Gem 106 to park their branded cars in their car park in Nottingham to protect them from possible attack.
(Source : Radio Today, UK)
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