Disasters on the Severn
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The River Severn is one of the most dangerous rivers in the United Kingdom, especially the Severn Estuary.
Many lives have been lost as man endeavours to work and live alongside the longest river in Britain. With the second highest rise and fall of tide in the world life can be difficult when manoeuvring a ship of any size in the estuary.
6th February 1809 The Newnham on Severn to Arlingham Passage ferryboat sank in full view of people on both banks of the Severn. Two boatmen on board drowned.
29th August 1848 The Vicar of Arlingham, the Revd Lloyd Crawley, arrived too late to travel from Newnham on Severn on the ferry to home. Foolishly he tried to ride on his horse across the Severn, but was drowned.
1st February 1868 A goods train fell into the flooded Severn whilst crossing a wooden bridge at Caersws. The driver and fireman were killed.
17th July 1889 On a warm sunny afternoon 7yr old Reginald Phillips and his 9yr old brother Victor drowned in the Severn whilst swimming off Newnham on Severn. Their father Tom, the local ferryman, heard the commotion and raced to the spot and recovered the body of his younger lad.
4th August 1919 On this Bank Holiday Monday pleasure boats were taking people on trips between Gloucester and Stourport. One boat, the May Queen, came down river passing the Hampstall Ferry, (located between Stourport and Holt Fleet), at quite a speed. The ferryboat lurched and all 17 passengers were tipped into the Severn. Some said the ferry was overloaded. That day 9 people were drowned.
8th August 1937 15 year old Gloucester lad, Harry Kingscott, drowned whilst swimming in the Severn at Wainlodes.
11th August 1937 Mrs Saunders collected her 10yr old daughter Florence from school at Newnham on Severn and decided to let her and her friends play on the bank of the river. The younf children paddled in the water but were suddeenly swept off their feet by the incoming tide. Florence was drowned, but her friends were saved.
4th February 1939 The First Severn Bridge Disaster
Three tanker barges overturned in the estuary off Sharpness.
They were taken with the tide into the piers of the Severn Railway Bridge.
Of the eight man crew, six men were killed
3rd April 1947 A British ship, the 1580 ton Stancliffe, went aground off Sharpness loaded with 3,000 tons of timber. Local shipyard engineer, Ivor Langford, managed to cut the vessel in two and sail both parts down to Cardiff Docks. There the two halves were joined together and the ship sailed agin under the new name of Gripfast.
23rd March 1951 A large 4,845 ton Egyptian registered ship Ramses II was bound for Sharpness loaded with 7,000 maize from Russia when she ran aground on Lydney Sands. Unable to float her off her cargo had to be unloaded out in the estuary into smaller craft. Eventually she became a total loss and occasionally the wreck can be seen above the mud at low water.
25th October 1960 The Severn Bridge Disaster
Two loaded tanker barges, the Arkendale H and the Wastdale H were off Sharpness when they came together in thick fog.
The tide took them into a pier of the Severn Railway Bridge and two spans came crashing down onto the barges.
There was an explosion and of the eight man crew, five were killed.
16th February 1961 The Loss of the BP Explorer
The BP Explorer was loaded and bound for Sharpness from Swansea.
As the loaded tanker barge made her way up the Severn Estuary she suddenly turned over. It was not until the following day
that the tanker barge was seen bouncing her way, upside down, through the wrecked Severn Railway Bridge.
Her crew of five men were killed.
The BP Explorer was salvaged and rebuilt as the BP Driver, but on the 31st January 1962 she was driven aground
at The Nash, but fortunately her crewed were saved.
19th November 1961 During construction of the Severn Bridge 3 men fell into the Severn Estuary. The alarm was raised and a rescue boat crewed by 2 men set sail from Chepstow. Unknown to the crew of the rescue boat the 3 men had been picked up safely by the last crossing of the day of one of the Aust to Beachley ferry boats, the Severn Princess. Two tanker barges were coming down empty from Sharpness, the Wyesdale H and the Wharfedale H, tied together and both being steered from the Wyesdale H. With no navigation lights on the rescue launch could not be seen and suddenly both empty tanker barges collided with the launch. One man was saved, but the other crew member of the rescue launch was drowned.
4th November 1984 A family from Coleford dropped off their 17yr old lad at Lydney Grammar School to play rugby. The remainder then decided to go to Lydney Docks to walk along the river bank. As the nearby sandbanks looked so inviting they foolishly walked onto them. Unfortunately the incoming tide trapped them and Robert and Hazel Bedford with their 5yr old son Scott were drowned.
4th September 1990 Three men were working in one of the gantries attached to the M48 Severn Bridge carrying out routine maintenance work. Suddenly with a loud bang the gantry gave way plunging the 3 men into the Severn. 19yr old painter, Mark Seaton, survived the 150ft drop, but Brian Phelps (44) and Eric Sullivan (46) were killed.
