In the Electric Railway Society Journal in 1981, the following was reported: Eltham Well Hall station is to be replaced by a massive bus/rail interchange at Glenlea Road. Despite this, Wilsdon suggested the pair go to the nearby Railway Staff Association Club at about 19:00 and get a drink to which Stokes agreed, with the pair arriving just in time for the club to open at 19:05. Return to the Kent Rail Homepage or alternatively, check for Updates. Wilsdon did not meet with the supervisor at Ramsgate, likely owing to the fact that his was the only Class 47 engine at the depot and would have been easy to find.[2]. This did not occur, and the two met up at Ramsgate Depot by the locomotive at around 18:25. Stokes was unable to recall much of what occurred at Margate and Wilsdon died, so it was uncertain as to what had occurred during this period, and although a pub was close to the station, it was considered that they did not have enough time to reach it. More like this London History Local History Family History Eltham Palace London Family The Tudor Boy George Lido Abandoned swimming pools A A.M.C.O. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. There was an imbalance with the urine alcohol level which made it very likely that the driver had also been drinking alcohol within an hour of his death, meaning it was possible he had been drinking at the controls. 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 crew left the cab for a few minutes and as a result the train departed from Margate eight minutes late. Eltham Well Hall rail crash Wiki - everipedia.org 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. Eltham,Well,Hall,rail,crashThe,Eltham,Well,Hall,rail,crash,was,an,accident,on,the,British,railway,system,that,occurred,on,11,June,1972,at,approximately,21:35. An excursion train from Margate to Kentish Town derailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall station, Eltham, London. Shortly after leaving Rainham, Atterbury noted that the speed seemed "a little bit excessive" and that Wilsdon had been braking intensely between Gillingham and Chatham railway station. Eltham Eltham station Well Hall Road Eltham Greater London SE9 6SL GET DIRECTIONS Ticket office opening hours: Monday - Friday - 06:40 to 20:00 Saturday - 06:10 to 20:00 Sunday - 08:10 to 15:40 NO Waiting room YES Ticket machine YES Toilet YES Impaired Access Staff Station facilities Ticketing Services & Information Oyster Pre-Pay YES Yes At 15:22 Wilsdon signed on duty with Hither Green by telephone. Both were severely damaged. 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. An excursion train from. Stationmaster Arundell signalled the train clear to depart for London, but both he and Atterbury found that there was no response in the cab. Wilsdon met with his secondman, a youth of 18 years, there. The original death roll among the passengers was three but one died of her injuries in mid-August and another of his injuries in November. [2], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}512719N 00301E / 51.45536N 0.05019E / 51.45536; 0.05019, Events prior to Wilsdon arriving at Ramsgate, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen, "Railway crash driver survived dismissal", "Accident at Eltham Well Hall on 11th June 1972", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eltham_Well_Hall_rail_crash&oldid=1142297435, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 16:48. Stokes had arrived first, having spoken with the supervisor at Ramsgate to ascertain the details of the train. It seems these splashes were too late and light to register in the cab. Well Hall, Eltham, train crash, 1972: an injured train driver being carried to an ambulance. Since 1969, Wilsdon had had a clean record with no reprimands. In contrast, Stokes claimed that Wilsdon mentioned drinking some sherry when they met at Ramsgate. Its nameplates were salvaged, and transferred to No. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. The fourth coach had ended up roughly 90 degrees to the track, leaning over on its left side. Eltham Well Hall - Kent Rail D1671 was withdrawn some four months later. 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. By 1972 he was married with young children and living in Rainham, Kent - which meant he would usually have to make an almost two hour rail commute to his depot at Hither Green. He was thoroughly critical of Wilsdon's behaviour, describing it as "reprehensible" and "disgraceful". There was an imbalance with the urine alcohol level which made it very likely that the driver had also been drinking alcohol within an hour of his death, meaning it was possible he had been drinking at the controls. located in the administrative territorial entity. June 11, 1972. On the Dartford Loop Line via Sidcup existed Eltham & Mottingham station; this was subsequently renamed plain Mottingham on 1st October of the same year. Owing to the large number of day-trippers booked for this customary annual works-outing, a pair of excursion trains were laid on to transport them to Margate and back. 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. Rail; . According to his notes, the train passed through Bexleyheath at 21:31, seven minutes behind schedule (estimates showed that Wilsdon had made up at least a minute and a half between Gillingham and Strood) and was running on clear signals. This caused both coaches to overturn onto their right side, with the leading end of the second coach coming to a stand in front of the locomotive and the rear of the first coach, which in combination with the fourth coach, formed an "N" shape with the first four coaches. It was added to the Archive on 23rd March 2006. The scheme required the demolition of Well Hall station, for it partially resided on the site required for the trunk road, but also gave rise to the closure of Eltham Park station and the provision of a brand new set of platforms in-between the two. The last train to call at Eltham Park and Well Hall stations was the 23:43 Charing Cross to Dartford. Of these penalties, three were fairly minor isolated offences (unauthorised absence in October 1960, persistent lateness in February 1961 and a "relatively minor driving offence" in February 1963) but two were serious offences, one of which resulted in a temporary suspension. Trying to gain Wilsdon's attention, he made two light applications ("splashes") of the guard's brake. All three of these coaches were leaning over on their left sides to various degrees, with the leading end of the fifth coach having been badly damaged by the impact with the fourth coach. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. This accident has been the subject of a published formal accident investigation, which you will find below. It seems these splashes were too late and light to register in the cab. 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. 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. The first coach followed the overturned locomotive but remained upright, the coupling failing quite late into the sequence. Railman Akehurst, who had heard the derailment, immediately called Dartford signal box and reported the derailment. [1] Again, he was off-duty at the time and British Rail was not informed of this occurrence until April. Of these penalties, three were fairly minor isolated offences (unauthorised absence in October 1960, persistent lateness in February 1961 and a "relatively minor driving offence" in February 1963) but two were serious offences, one of which resulted in a temporary suspension. By 1908, Well Hall had acquired a footbridge between the platforms, east of the main building and waiting shelter. Although uncertain, it seems that Wilsdon believed that the two stoppages that occurred to his train at Sittingbourne and Rainham and having not seen the first excursion train at Newington, was because the first train was running slowly and kept stopping his train. Lessons learned from Cannon Street crash - Rail The locomotive jumped the sharp curve, derailing and rolling onto its left side and sliding through a coal yard. 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. From the evidence gained of Wilsdon's activities on 11 June, a fairly thorough timeline of Wilsdon's movements were tracked and confirmed by those who he made contact with but three moments of uncertainty were later found in Wilsdon's movements that day. Two bottles of beer given to the crew by the excursion's organisers were found in the cab, but they were unopened. He had been working on the railways since 1958 and was experienced to drive the British Rail Class 47 locomotive, which would occasionally come down from trains in other regions. SYND 12-6-72 AFTERMATH OF ELTHAM TRAIN CRASH AP Archive 4.73M subscribers Subscribe 6 Share Save 2.5K views 7 years ago (11 Jun 1972) The aftermath scenes of a derailment of a excursion. 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. After arrival at Margate, the train was stabled at Ramsgate. 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. 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". Cookie policy. There was an imbalance with the urine alcohol level which made it very likely that the driver had also been drinking alcohol at the controls. However, this evidence was contradicted by a later statement made by Secondman Stokes that when they met at Ramsgate, Wilsdon told Stokes that he had "ended up going somewhere and drinking some sherry". GitHub export from English Wikipedia. The actor Phil Daniels, star of Quadrophenia, Scum, and later EastEnders was aboard one of the derailed coaches with his parents after a day trip. The first and most serious of these moments was the fact that it was uncertain what had occurred with Wilsdon and his brothers between 14:02 and 17:15 with his brothers both declaring that Wilsdon had not drunk after returning from the pub in Rainham. The station building was located on the London-bound platform and was a familiar SER design, being a single-storey timber structure with a hipped slated roof, the main part of which was 60-foot length . Apr 2, 2017 - Eltham Well Hall Rail Crash. A 59-year-old female passenger died three days later from injuries sustained. Semi-detached London: Suburban Development, Life and Transport, 1900-39. Emergency treatment for the driver's injured mate after the crash of an excursion train from Margate outside Well Hall Station, Eltham, London, last night Press Association Photos Trying to gain Wilsdon's attention, he made two light applications ("splashes") of the guard's brake. Emergency services were notified, and arrived between 21:40 and 21:42. The Inspecting Officer, Colonel J.R.H. The name "Well Hall" derived from that of a former Tudor mansion, which resided on a site surrounded by a moat, located 160-yards north of the station. 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. By the time the train approached Eltham Well Hall station it was running at around 65 miles per hour (105km/h). Despite this, Robertson felt that there was no severe issue with drinking amongst drivers on Britain's railways, with only two other accidents (one in 1913 and another in 1952) having occurred explicitly due to driver drunkenness in the sixty years prior to the accident, and as such he believed that it was a combination of railway staff's thoughts and self-discipline for drivers' behaviour with alcohol. 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. At about 15:20 he booked on duty by telephone with Hither Green depot and travelled by train to Ramsgate. Upon completing his phone conversation, Wilsdon returned to his cab and departed having been stopped at Rainham for about four minutes. Six lives were lost including the driver, and 126 people were injured. 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. Stokes had arrived first, having spoken with the supervisor at Ramsgate to ascertain the details of the train. Robertson, concluded that the driver Robert Wilsdon had "grossly impaired his ability to drive safely by drinking a considerable quantity of alcohol both before and after booking on duty, including some shortly before leaving Margate and some more in his cab during the journey.". The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. The train was an excursion for Kentish Town-based railway employees of the London Midland Region and their families. In reality, Wilsdon did not leave for Rainham station until 17:15 and as such his move was solely to gain pay for an extra two hours for which he had not actually been on duty. His speech was clear and his gait was normal. The second and third coach followed the first coach until relatively late into the derailment, with the coupling between the first and second failing around the end of the derailment. The train arrived at Margate and the entrainment of passengers was routine, with boarding complete by 20:04. Please see this explanation for further details. Eltham Well Hall rail crash - Alchetron, the free social encyclopedia Wilsdon met with his secondman, a youth of 18 years, there. He was thoroughly critical of Wilsdon's behaviour, describing it as "reprehensible" and "disgraceful". His colleague was similarly promoted but resigned in early 1963 after a series of reprimands and suspensions. Pictures by my father, Reg Godsave. 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%). Eltham Well Hall rail crash - Unionpedia, the concept map The only other theory was that Wilsdon had obtained a bottle of spirits at some point, stored it on his person and had drunk it at some point after leaving Margate, and later disposed of the glass by throwing it out the window of the locomotive, with the theory being that Wilsdon either obtained the bottle at some point whilst in Margate or had kept one on his person since he left Rainham for work. Pinterest. The train passed through at high speed without braking and sped into the curve at around 65 miles per hour (105km/h). derailment. Along this paper, the methodology is exemplified on a specific accident: the derailments caused by over-speed in curve. 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. Compliments. Investigating this theory, the morning after the accident, the cab was searched and three smashed glasses were found in the cab's wreckage. Computations later proved that the driver had apparently shut off power where required, but had not made a brake application. At the subsequent public inquiry it was revealed that the driver had been intoxicated by alcohol. An excursion train from Margate to Kentish Town derailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall station, Eltham, London. They prepared the train which consisted of a Class 47 diesel locomotive and 10 coaches. Stationmaster Arundell signalled the train clear to depart for London, but both he and Atterbury found that there was no response in the cab. Latest Documents 2004 - 2023 railwaysarchive.co.uk - all rights reserved. Contributions David Glasspool Collection, The main building on the "up" side was a carbon copy of the structure which still exists today at Bexleyheath. The Report for the crash was released on 1 June 1973 and it quite clearly showed that the accident was caused entirely by the actions of Robert Wilsdon, in that he had "grossly impaired his ability to drive safely by drinking a considerable quantity of alcohol both before and after booking on duty". It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Eltham Well Hall rail crash". Physical description 1 photograph : photoprint ; sheet 15.3 x 20.2 cm Contributors Temporary public electric workings operated down all three routes between 10th and 16th May 1926 inclusive, as a result of the General Strike, steam-hauled passenger trains briefly resuming afterwards. Statistics This was another recommendation that had previously been made - this time in 1972 in the aftermath of the Eltham Well Hall rail crash, in which six people died following a derailment caused by driver Robert . As he did not need to be on duty until the afternoon, Wilsdon joined his two brothers for lunch at around 12:55, the three travelling to a local pub where they stayed until closing time just after 14:00. He later claimed to a representative from the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen that he would not drink again. This did not occur, and the two met up at Ramsgate Depot by the locomotive at around 18:25. Notable survivors of the 1931 rebuilding at all three stations mentioned were the SER timber waiting shelters. Although uncertain, it seems that Wilsdon believed that the two stoppages that occurred to his train at Sittingbourne and Rainham and having not seen the first excursion train at Newington, was because the first train was running slowly and kept stopping his train. 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. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. Poor weather hampered construction and pushed back the commissioning of the new station, both the existing sites lingering on until Saturday 16th March 1985. Transport Libraries The inquiry hypothesized that the driver had taken spirits into the cab with him, having collected them during his unexplained absence before leaving Margate. On Sunday 11th June 1972 at 21:36, disaster struck. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. Well Hall, Eltham, train crash, 1972: an injured train driver being Two of them were the beer bottles that Stationmaster Arundell had seen at Margate and both were confirmed to have been unopened. However, as the train approached Sittingbourne, the train was forced to briefly stop due to signals and it was held again momentarily around Rainham by Signalman Obee who had been forced to open his level crossing to allow a pair of buses through as the train was running late. Apr 2, 2017 - Eltham Well Hall Rail Crash. At no point did Wilsdon even attempt to slow his train beyond having already shut off the engine to coast which was normal at this long downhill sector of the line. In future, train crew would have to book in by telephone or report to a supervisor who could visibly look for signs of unfitness for duty. The crew left the cab for a few minutes and as a result the train departed from Margate eight minutes late. David Glasspool Collection. He later commented to Stokes a joking complaint about the driver of the first excursion train, calling him a "slow bastard".
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