eltham well hall train crash

Two of them were the beer bottles that Stationmaster Arundell had seen at Margate and both were confirmed to have been unopened. As well as Wilsdon, two passengers died at the scene; a woman later died of her injuries in August and a male likewise in November, bringing the number of fatalities to five. [1] [2] In the past Well Hall was the grounds of a manor house, and then a hamlet. [1] Although Wilsdon paid the fine, British Rail were not notified of this occurrence until a colleague of Wilsdon's was similarly charged five days later. Guard Atterbury was not criticised whatsoever for his behaviour and it was considered unfortunate that his "splashes" were too weak to gain Wilsdon's attention. The overgrown area behind the fence on the right was formerly the goods yard. However, changes were made to the signalling at Eltham so that through trains would receive a yellow signal on approach. Semi-detached London: Suburban Development, Life and Transport, 1900-39. RSS Feeds He briefed the pair on the train's particulars with Wilsdon appearing sober and routine. Eltham Well Hall rail crash explained The journey was normal until the train stopped for signals at Rainham, whereafter the driver made an unscheduled stop in the station to telephone the signalman and ask about another excursion train that they were due to pass some distance ahead. On Sunday 11th June 1972 at 21:36, disaster struck. This evidence contradicts that of Wilsdon's brothers who claimed that he had not drunk between 14:02 and 17:15. This was agreed as there was no evidence to the contrary and it was believed that Wilsdon was travelling to Ramsgate at this time. Apr 2, 2017 - Eltham Well Hall Rail Crash. His colleague was similarly promoted but resigned in early 1963 after a series of reprimands and suspensions. Single-storey they may have been, but these were substantial main buildings for these intermediate stations, extending for 145-feet in length, with widths of 20-feet and 25-feet at their narrowest and widest points respectively. However when approaching Eltham Park railway station he became concerned at the train's apparent speed and more so as it neared Eltham Well Hall, where a sharp curve changed the train's direction from southwest to northwest. At the subsequent public inquiry it was revealed that Wilsdon had been intoxicated by alcohol. He later claimed to a representative from the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen that he would not drink again. While they chatted the secondman 'smelt something pretty strong' on the driver's breath and when questioned about it, he replied that he had "had some beer at dinner time" and had "ended up going somewhere and drinking some sherry". Places time Forgot London Bus East London London Areas Old Well Hall Bus Station 1970's J Michele Janes Eltham History The guard told the inquiry that after leaving Rainham he had noticed that the train's speed has been "a little bit excessive" and that the driver braked intensely between Gillingham and Chatham. When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Stokes recalled that when Wilsdon turned to speak with him, he "smelt something pretty strong" on the driver's breath and when asked, Wilsdon explained that he had been drinking at lunchtime and later had some sherry prior to arriving in Ramsgate. This document was published on 1st June 1973 by Department of the Environment. The public inquiry into the accident eleven years later agreed that this incident was a seemingly isolated occurrence and all had reason to believe Wilsdon; the Line Manager who reinstated the two was not criticised for this approach, although some criticism was given to the Management in 1961 for promoting Wilsdon so quickly after being reinstated. Since 1969, Wilsdon had had a clean record with no reprimands. By the time the train approached Eltham Well Hall station it was running at around 65 miles per hour (105km/h). The rear of the coach had been somewhat damaged by the fifth, sixth and seventh coaches passing by it, derailed but still on the track. Sometime between these two renaming occurrences, the goods yard acquired a five-ton crane. An excursion train from Margate to Kentish Town derailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall station, Eltham, London. Two bottles of beer given to the crew by the excursion's organisers were found in the cab, but they were unopened. He briefed the pair on the train's particulars with Wilsdon appearing sober and routine. Eltham Well Hall rail crash - Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core Your author surmises it was during this incident that the up side platform canopy was damaged. Lessons learned from Cannon Street crash - Rail Contributions Arundell believed that they were a gift left by the organisers of the excursion to the engine crew - such being a normal 'tip' for excursion drivers to enjoy off-duty - and he did not question their appearance. A second trailing crossover between the running lines had been installed 50-yards east of the platforms, and the goods yard acquired a further two sidings and a shed (although, as per that at Bexleyheath, rails did not pass through it). All witnesses who saw the driver including the guard, the station staff at both Rainham and Margate, and the depot staff at Ramsgate, observed no signs of intoxication. He later claimed to a representative from the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen that he would not drink again. Both were severely damaged. The recommendation that booking-on by telephone be carefully controlled was reiterated in the Inspectorate report of the Cannon Street Station rail crash in 1991. http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/eventsummary.php?eventID=134, Images of the accident (approximately halfway down the page), https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=Eltham_Well_Hall_rail_crash&oldid=202875, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Stokes had arrived first, having spoken with the supervisor at Ramsgate to ascertain the details of the train. All of the coaches were Mark 1 rolling stock with the oldest coach dating back to 1954 and the newest coach dating to 1962. Electric services ran again from 6th June 1926, and the full suburban electric timetable through to Dartford commenced on 19th July 1926. Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. Please consider donating to help with our running costs. The secondman may not have been attentive because he had also been drinking, but he did not know the route and would not have realised that the driver was not braking for the curve when he should have been. Eltham Well Hall rail crash - Unionpedia, the concept map Depending on the status and age of the original document, you may need an OPSI click-use license if you wish to reproduce this material, and other restrictions may apply. Pinterest. East London Train Station Vintage Photos City Photo Autos A major rail crash happened at Well Hall on Sunday evening 11 June 1972. When Arundell went to examine the cab, he found it empty but after returning shortly afterwards, saw a pair of beer bottles in the cab. Well Hall Road, which is one of the key arterial roads between Eltham and Woolwich, is blocked near the junction of Arsenal Road. Photograph by Press Association, 1972. wikipedia.en/Eltham_Well_Hall_rail_crash.md at main - Github This was a very unusual action, particularly as he had made up almost seven minutes of the lost time. Statistics Eltham Well Hall rail crash Wiki - everipedia.org By the time the train approached Eltham Well Hall station it was running at around 65mph. Eltham Well Hall station is to be replaced by a massive bus/rail interchange at Glenlea Road. The final uncertainty was the fact that when his body was autopsied, Wilsdon's blood alcohol content was 0.278% (the legal limit for driving a road vehicle in England at that time was 0.08%). The curve had a maximum permitted speed to be taken at 20 miles per hour (32 km/h) but the train was estimated to have been travelling at 65 . Both Wilsdon and his colleague were reinstated on 18 December 1961, with Wilsdon being promoted to driver less than a week later on 25 December with his transfer to Hither Green. Before he could go ask superiors as to where they were, he saw Stokes and Wilsdon return. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. A post-mortem examination of Wilsdon showed that he had a blood alcohol level of 0.278% (the legal limit for driving a road vehicle is 0.08%). The cause of the crash was concluded to be intoxication of the driver. A combination of the signal checks at Sittingbourne and Rainham and the unscheduled stop at Rainham had caused Wilsdon to lose most of the progress he had made between Margate and Sittingbourne. 125 passengers were injured. By contrast to this, secondman Stokes arrived at Hither Green, signed on duty in person at around 15:12 and was instructed by the Supervisor to travel on the 15:32 train and try to meet Wilsdon on the train. However, when approaching Eltham Park railway station he became concerned at the train's apparent speed and more so as it neared Eltham Well Hall, where a sharp curve changed the train's direction from southwest to northwest. These trains would be driven by Southern Region drivers for some of the journey (particularly to ensure that experienced drivers took the trains through the complex arrangements around Clapham Junction) and would, on reaching Margate and being cleared of passengers, take them onward to Ramsgate Depot where they would be stored until the return trip. It came to a stand laying parallel with the locomotive, having jack-knifed and pushed slightly around so the leading cab was facing back towards the line and the rear cab was pointing away from the track. Initial reports suggest a person was hit by a motorbike. Stokes was 18 years old and had been working on the railways for almost two years at the time of the accident, having been based at Hither Green this entire time. The derailed train came to a halt very close to an electrical sub-station powering the third-rail for electric multiple unit trains and this had immediately short-circuited. The eighth coach was upright but derailed, the ninth coach was derailed at its leading bogie but also upright, and the tenth coach (in which Atterbury had been riding) was upright and on the rails, though some internal damage had occurred. Wilsdon was not due to be on duty until the afternoon and had gone to a pub at lunchtime with his brothers who said he spent the afternoon at home. He made recommendations that booking-on of drivers by telephone should be controlled carefully, but did not recommend any changes to warnings of permanent speed restrictions. The train passed through at high speed without braking and sped into the curve at around 65 miles per hour (105km/h). This travel time and distance between Rainham and Hither Green played a key role in the accident that occurred.[2]. The "down" platform was equipped with a timber shelter sporting a backward-sloping curved roof; happily, an example of this design is still in use today at Welling. When Stokes boarded the engine, he waited alone in the cab until around 18:25 when Wilsdon arrived and spoke about the preparations for the journey back to London. A public inquiry carried out into the cause of the accident was launched on 12 June 1972 by Colonel John R.H. Robertson that looked into the cause of the derailment. Further modernisation was the order of the day in 1931, when stations at Bexleyheath, Welling, and Eltham (Well Hall) were rebuilt. Although Atterbury had been somewhat concerned about excessive speed between Gillingham and Chatham, he stated that Wilsdon had operated appropriately through Dartford. His colleague was similarly promoted but resigned in early 1963 after a series of reprimands and suspensions. This caused nine out of 10 carriages to derail, injuring many occupants and killing 6 including the driver. June 11, 1972. Report on the Derailment that occurred on 11th June 1972 at Eltham Jan 15, 2015 - A major rail crash happened at Well Hall on Sunday evening 11 June 1972. An excursion train returning from Margate came off the track on the sharp curve outside the station. Eltham Well Hall rail crash - Wikidata Rail; . He made recommendations that booking-on of drivers by telephone should be controlled carefully, but did not recommend any changes to warnings of permanent speed restrictions. The last station the train passed on its journey that Atterbury had to time was at Bexleyheath railway station 4.3 miles (6.9km) east of the accident site. Having been in operation for ninety years, today there is no trace of this station having ever existed, the site having fallen foul to a road widening scheme. Col J.R.H. The first coach followed the overturned locomotive but remained upright, the coupling failing quite late into the sequence. ", -- More Tools -- Secondman Stokes, who agreed with Wilsdon to get some extra drinks at Ramsgate was severely criticised for his "disgraceful" behaviour in drinking three pints prior to taking the train back to Margate, but it was agreed that Stokes' young age and weak character meant that he seemed unwilling to stop Wilsdon from going to get some drink. An excursion train from Margate to Kentish Town derailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall station, Eltham, London. Well Hall, Eltham, train crash, 1972: an injured train driver being carried to an ambulance. I much regret to report that five passengers in the train and its driver lost their lives and that 126 people, including the secondman on the locomotive, were injured and were either taken to hospitals in the area or received medical attention at the site of the accident: 40 of those taken to hospital were detained, some of them being very seriously injured. David Glasspool Collection.