40th Anniversary of the Penton Hook Accident
Craig
magazine. It was written to remember those who died and also to raise
awareness of what can go wrong when out in increased stream
conditions.
Forty years ago on 25th April, there was a tragic accident at Penton
Hook Lock on the River Thames in which three oarsmen from Staines Boat
Club lost their lives.
On that Sunday morning in 1971 an 8+, "The Ashes", was on a routine
outing - upstream to Bell Weir then down to Penton Hook. The weather
was dry but the stream was fast. Whilst turning at Penton Hook Lock a
bowside blade became trapped at the weir guard posts, around 140m from
the weir, and the boat pivoted until it was broadside on to the
stream. It then broke in two between the 3 & 4 seats and began to
sink.
The bowman clung to a post and was rescued by a cruiser. 2, 3, 4 and 5
swam towards the bank but David Firman (2) did not make it and he was
swept through the weir. 6, 7, strokeman and cox stayed with the stern
section until it was swept onto the weir where it broke up. Strokeman
Alan Choules supported the young cox, holding his head above the
water, and at the weir he lifted him towards a man standing on the
weir bridge but could not quite reach far enough. Several witnesses
saw Alan shield the cox's head as they were swept through. Below the
weir he continued to support the cox until two men arrived in a
dinghy. They were able to pull the cox from the water but by this time
Alan had disappeared. Allan Wickens (6) and John French (7) were also
swept through the weir. About half a mile downstream Allan Wickens
lost consciousness but John French grabbed a rope thrown from the bank
and was pulled to safety.
David Firman (29) was an engineer and unmarried.
Allan Wickens (25) was a bank clerk and had been married for 18
months.
Alan Choules (29) was married and had two young daughters. He was a
Detective Constable. For saving the life of the cox he received
posthumous awards from the Royal Humane Society and the Carnegie Trust
Foundation.
In 2009 Staines BC named a new safety launch "Alan Choules" and in
2011 a new 8+ was named "The Ashes" in memory of the crew.
Since the accident all boats stop and turn at a sharp bend around 800m
upstream of the lock and well away from the weir.
(Also, for reference purposes here is an aerial shot of Penton Hook
Lock and its 3 weirs. The guard posts can be seen to the west of the
lock, at the end of a walkway.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Penton+Hook+Road,+Staines&aq=0&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=16.785206,39.418945&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Penton+Hook+Rd,+Staines+TW18,+United+Kingdom&ll=51.414531,-0.501326&spn=0.004316,0.009624&t=k&z=17)
Carl Douglas
> Below is a copy of the article I wrote for April's Rowing& Regatta
> magazine. It was written to remember those who died and also to raise
> awareness of what can go wrong when out in increased stream
> conditions.
>
>
> Forty years ago on 25th April, there was a tragic accident at Penton
> Hook Lock on the River Thames in which three oarsmen from Staines Boat
> Club lost their lives.
>
> On that Sunday morning in 1971 an 8+, "The Ashes", was on a routine
> outing - upstream to Bell Weir then down to Penton Hook. The weather
> was dry but the stream was fast. Whilst turning at Penton Hook Lock a
> bowside blade became trapped at the weir guard posts, around 140m from
> the weir, and the boat pivoted until it was broadside on to the
Thanks for that (triple ;) ) posting, Craig.
It would be wise for all users of rivers which are controlled by rising
sector sluice gates to fix this sad event firmly in the backs of their
minds.
The Thames (UK) has many such sluices - from which, once sucked in, you
have almost no escape. Very few are guarded by the HenleyRR-style
floating booms which would do so much, so economically, to save
accidental swimmers & users of small boats (including eights) from the
fury of these sluices.
For 40 years, the ARA pretty much ignored this tragedy & all the lessons
it provided. That's partly why a student eight went through the
Hambledon Sluices at the bottom of the Henley stretch about 7 years ago
- there was no official advice on the dangers of such sluices & getting
too close in flood condition - with its crew rescued in the nick of time
& at great personal risk by Environment Agency officers who just
happened to be there. And it's certainly why an internal ARA report on
that accident never saw the light of day.....
So I sincerely welcome the publication of Craig's concise report in
British Rowing's own magazine. And I hope that this signals a healthy
shift away from that institution's historical reluctance to confront or
address those dangers in rowing which carry the highest risk of a deadly
outcome.
Well done, all!
Carl
--
Carl Douglas Racing Shells -
Fine Small-Boats/AeRoWing Low-drag Riggers/Advanced Accessories
Write: Harris Boatyard, Laleham Reach, Chertsey KT16 8RP, UK
Find: http://tinyurl.com/2tqujf
Email: ca...@carldouglas.co.uk Tel: +44(0)1932-570946 Fax: -563682
URLs: www.carldouglas.co.uk (boats) & www.aerowing.co.uk (riggers)
tetsushi-ozawa
I have translated your text to Japanese, then uploaded on my brog;
http://blog.goo.ne.jp/ozwrow/e/31c21d82e42a6471ed2f1649fa94e56e
In Japan, there were similar accidents;
1995, Arai weir in Seta river in Shiga Prefecture, Junior women 2X, a
girl dead,
and 4 serious accidents crash to pier of bridge lost 5 persons in apx.
40 years.
Tetsushi Ozawa, Hiroshima
