[1] [2] In the past Well Hall was the grounds of a manor house, and then a hamlet. The rear end of the first coach came to rest up against the leading cab. 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. After the crossing was cleared, he set the route for the train to proceed but instead, the train came to a stop at the platform. 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. 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. Links +44 (0)20 7611 2222info@wellcomecollection.org, Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence, 1 photograph : photoprint ; sheet 15.3 x 20.2 cm, Injured in excursion disaster. Eccles Rail Crash . 125 passengers were injured. The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. Notable survivors of the 1931 rebuilding at all three stations mentioned were the SER timber waiting shelters. Copyright Info, Accident at Eltham Well Hall on 11th June 1972. Places time Forgot London Bus East London London Areas Old Well Hall Bus Station 1970's J Michele Janes Eltham History Pin on Eltham and Environs - Pinterest 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 occasion aside, the station survived the war years intact. The outbound journeys left Kentish Town around 0830, were completed uneventfully and the trains stabled at Ramsgate as planned. [2], The train arrived at Margate and the entrainment of passengers was routine, with boarding complete by 20:04. 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. Book: Ministry of Transport . 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. Along this paper, the methodology is exemplified on a specific accident: the derailments caused by over-speed in curve. 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. 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. Closure of Eltham Well Hall and Eltham Park stations was scheduled for Saturday 2nd March 1985, when the new platforms east of the former would be brought into use with a huge interchange with bus services. Exactly where the pair went in this period is unknown owing to Wilsdon's death and Stokes having little recollection of the events after leaving Ramsgate and although another pub was close to the station, it was considered that neither had time to reach it. Eltham Well Hall. injuries= 126The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. 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. The second excursion train, scheduled to leave Margate at 20:05 was to be crewed by Driver Wilsdon, Secondman P.E. The Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. On the Dartford Loop Line via Sidcup existed Eltham & Mottingham station; this was subsequently renamed plain Mottingham on 1st October of the same year. Genealogy The empty train left Ramsgate and made an uneventful journey to Margate, arriving at around 19:59. Eltham Well Hall rail crash - en-academic.com Two of them were the beer bottles that Stationmaster Arundell had seen at Margate and both were confirmed to have been unopened. Credits 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. "The train was the diesel-hauled 20.05 Margate to Kentish Town excursion train and it comprised ten coaches, well filled with passengers returning from a day's outing at Margate. Stationmaster Arundell signalled the train clear to depart for London, but both he and Atterbury found that there was no response in the cab. Nevertheless, at Wilsdon's suggestion, they both went to the nearby Railway Staff Association Club at about 19:00 and drank three pints of light and bitter beer each. Since 1969, Wilsdon had had a clean record with no reprimands. This document was kindly sourced from Harry Knox and is in our Accident reports collection. More significant was the opening of "Shooters Hill & Eltham Park" station, a mere 41-chains to the east of Well Hall. D1671 was withdrawn some four months later. According to them, the three returned home and spent the afternoon indoors with the children until Robert was driven by one of his brothers to Rainham station at around 17:15. However, changes were made to the signalling at Eltham so that through trains would receive a yellow signal on approach. 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. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. The curve had a maximum permitted speed to be taken at 20mph but the train was estimated to have been travelling at 65mph resulting in the locomotive and all but one of the ten carriages derailing. At 19:45 they met with the guard and drove the train to Margate to receive the passengers. Report on the Derailment that occurred on 11th June 1972 at Eltham (Well Hall) Station in the Southern Region British Railways Document Summary The report into the derailment at Eltham in 1972, caused by the intoxicated driver taking a sharp curve at excessive speed. Railman Akehurst, who had heard the derailment, immediately called Dartford signal box and reported the derailment. 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,crashThe,Eltham,Well,Hall,rail,crash,was,an,accident,on,the,British,railway,system,that,occurred,on,11,June,1972,at,approximately,21:35. Computations later proved that the driver had apparently shut off power where required, but had not made a brake application. Both men were subsequently suspended shortly afterwards, against which Wilsdon immediately appealed, claiming that the event was an isolated incident. Since 1969, Wilsdon had had a clean record with no reprimands. 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. An excursion train from. 2004 - 2023 railwaysarchive.co.uk - all rights reserved. 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 Eltham Well Hall rail crash was an accident on the British railway system that occurred on 11 June 1972 at approximately 21:35. 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] RSS Feeds This was agreed as there was no evidence to the contrary and it was believed that Wilsdon was travelling to Ramsgate at this time. The adequacy of the taxonomy is discussed with regards to the socio-technical context of accident reports. 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. The overgrown area behind the fence on the right was formerly the goods yard. Accident at Eltham Well Hall on 11th June 1972 - Railways Archive 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. Semi-detached London: Suburban Development, Life and Transport, 1900-39. Eltham Well Hall | EPC Resilience Pictures by my father, Reg Godsave. The driver Robert Wilsdon and five passengers were killed, and 126 people were injured. instance of. Genealogy Computations later proved that the driver had apparently shut off power where required, but had not made a brake application. 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. 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. Both brothers confirmed that he had not drunk after leaving the pub and were adamant on this point at the later public inquiry. They prepared the train which consisted of a Class 47 diesel locomotive and 10 coaches.