eltham well hall train crash

The locomotive jumped the sharp curve, derailing and rolling onto its left side and sliding through a coal yard. 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 recommendation that booking-on by telephone be carefully controlled was reiterated in the Inspectorate report of the Cannon Street Station rail crash in 1991. Stokes had arrived first, having spoken with the supervisor at Ramsgate to ascertain the details of the train. 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. British Rail staff who came in contact with Wilsdon on 11 June (his supervisor at Hither Green, depot staff at Ramsgate, Secondman Stokes, Railway Club staff at Ramsgate, Guard Atterbury, Stationmaster Arundell and his staff at Margate, Railman Fleming and Signalman Obee at Rainham) were all intensively questioned and gave evidence at the inquiry regarding the state of Wilsdon, to which all agreed that Wilsdon appeared perfectly fit and sober even as late as his unscheduled stop in Rainham, with the only person aware of Wilsdon already having drunk alcohol prior to reaching Ramsgate being Secondman Stokes, who considered him still fit and sober enough to drive the train. This accident has been the subject of a published formal accident investigation, which you will find below. The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. He briefed the pair on the train's particulars with Wilsdon appearing sober and routine. 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 had worked with Wilsdon occasionally before and had driven with him a few times prior. The crash happened at around 3.30pm today (May 23). Despite his experience and long time working on the railways, Wilsdon had been reprimanded five times throughout his career. 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. His suspension in 1961 was considered a warning sign of Wilsdon's alcoholic tendencies but it was agreed that at the time there was no evidence to disprove Wilsdon's statements that he would better himself and not drink again. The train arrived at Margate and the entrainment of passengers was routine, with boarding complete by 20:04. This took the platforms beyond the bridge which carried the running lines over Well Hall Road, and a new entrance was opened between the latter and the stations down platform, by means of a staircase upon the embankment. Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen, Railway accident : Report on the Derailment that occurred on 11 June 1972 at Eltham (Well Hall) Station in the Southern Region, British Railways, Accident at Eltham Well Hall on 11th June 1972. In that year, the Greater London Council (GLC) published proposals for the "Rochester Way Relief Road", today known as the "A2". 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. He subsequently gave Wilsdon a stern reprimand and advised him that such behaviour was not acceptable. Although Atterbury had been somewhat concerned about excessive speed between Gillingham and Chatham, he stated that Wilsdon had operated appropriately through Dartford. He had worked with Wilsdon a few times before and considered him an experienced driver. 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. At 15:22 Wilsdon signed on duty with Hither Green by telephone. 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. 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. All of the coaches were Mark 1 rolling stock with the oldest coach dating back to 1954 and the newest coach dating to 1962. Those who knew the driver said that he was quite a frequent drinker of alcohol and could "carry" much beer. 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. British Rail staff who came in contact with Wilsdon on 11 June (his supervisor at Hither Green, depot staff at Ramsgate, Secondman Stokes, Railway Club staff at Ramsgate, Guard Atterbury, Stationmaster Arundell and his staff at Margate, Railman Fleming and Signalman Obee at Rainham) were all intensively questioned and gave evidence at the inquiry regarding the state of Wilsdon, to which all agreed that Wilsdon appeared perfectly fit and sober even as late as his unscheduled stop in Rainham, with the only person aware of Wilsdon already having drunk alcohol prior to reaching Ramsgate being Secondman Stokes, who considered him still fit and sober enough to drive the train. Compliments. Semi-detached London: Suburban Development, Life and Transport, 1900-39. [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. Links Initial reports suggest a person was hit by a motorbike. A third smashed bottle found was later proven to have been a medicine bottle and was unlikely to have carried any alcohol at the time of the accident. Eltham Well Hall rail crash a train derailedderailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall stationEltham (Well Hall) derailmentLondon-bound train came off the track The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35.wikipedia 47Related Articles [filter] Further modernisation was the order of the day in 1931, when stations at Bexleyheath, Welling, and Eltham (Well Hall) were rebuilt. Approaching Eltham Park he became so concerned at the speed that he made two quick applications of the vacuum brake to try to draw the driver's attention, but before he could get a reaction it was too late. 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. 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. The curve had a maximum permitted speed to be taken at 20 miles per hour (32km/h) but the train was estimated to have been travelling at 65 miles per hour (105km/h) resulting in the locomotive and all but one of the ten carriages derailing. The locomotive and first four coaches left the rails and came to rest at an angle to the track, the second and third coaches on their sides. 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. 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. An excursion train returning from Margate came off the track on the sharp curve outside the station. 47048), came off the rails. An excursion train from Margate to Kentish Town derailed on a sharp curve at Eltham Well Hall station, Eltham, London. This procedure was considered practical and was allowed to remain in use, but it was agreed that the method Wilsdon used (where he casually booked on duty and for his own benefit of gaining two additional hours' pay by booking on at 15:22 instead of around 17:00 when he actually did leave home for work) was not appropriate and was to be stopped or prevented wherever possible. Further Reading Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. 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. Genealogy This occasion aside, the station survived the war years intact. 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. 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. The tragedy killed 112 people and injured 300 more and to date is the most catastrophic train crash to happen during peace time in England. 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 in England at that time was 0.08%). Further Research Although Robertson could not confirm Stokes' statements, he considered it likely that Wilsdon had drunk after 14:02 owing to the smell on Wilsdon's breath at Rainham several hours later and, whilst not explicitly accusing Wilsdon's brothers of lying, considered that anybody who tried to hide evidence of Wilsdon's drinking that day "did him a disservice". Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. 0 references. Pinterest. Shortly afterwards, a freight train collided heavily with the wreckage, killing the drivers of both locomotives. The rear end of the first coach came to rest up against the leading cab. Latest Documents 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. 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 .

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