The Sun.
London, England, 1865-05-31 00:00:00

Alarming Accident at the Thames

Embankment Works.

The staging recently built up by Mr. Furness on
the north-east side of Waterloo-bridge, between the
bridge and the steam-boat landing, for the purpose
of continuing the Thames Embankment works,
gave way yesterday morning, at about nine
o' clock, and seven men were thrown into the
water: They were, howererv,tiappily rescued. The
staging as it stood before the accident was in the
shape of a parallelogram about4o feet
feet b y
by 6, o r
15, along-
side
parallelogram
4
thereabouts, which latter still stands unbroken.
of as m aller
Planks lay upon the top from either end to a cross-
beam in the middle ; but these planks were unsup-
ported for a length of more than 20 feet. On the
planks were two " coffee-pot engines," small en-
gines with cranes, which the men had been working
during the morning to lift sand and concrete from
barges. They had just emptied one of the barges,
which put off with its four men in it, when the
staging, heaped up high with sand and concrete,
bearing one of the engines and a pile-driving ma-
chine, together with the workmen, their timber and
tools, was seen to waver and shake. The cross
piece, the only support to the planks, which had to
bear this great weight, snapped off on either side
close to the beams which supported it. Immediately
afterwards the planks fell with the workmen and
sand, one of the engines toppled over into a caisson
topsy-turvy, and rested there, blowing off the steam.
The pile-driving machine fell towards Somerset-
house, and swung, broken and dangerous, on the
still standing framework of the staging. A crowd
of workmen with their boats and ropes and hooks
came from the other parts of the works, and in a
very short time all the men in the water were rescued
alive. But for some time afterwards the foremen
were under the impression that one man, who went
by the name of " Clogs," was still missing, and the
dragsmen laboured for some time to find him. They
fished up an oil-can, a bag of nails, and a number
of other things that had fallen from the staging, but
found nothing else, and then it was said that all the
men were safe, and they discontinued dragging.
The men rescued were taken to Charing-cross
Hospital, where they were placed under the care of
Mr. E. Child, the house-surgeon. Their names
and injuries were as follow :—John Tanner, 30,
labourer, residing at No. 2, Noah's Ark-place,
Stangate, severe bruises ; Robert Gardner, 40,
labourer, No. 3, Sidway-place, Broadwall, Lam-
beth, a slight concussion ; John Westcott, 40,
labourer, 6, Broad-street, Cornwall-road, Lambeth,
scalp-wound ; and William Cook, 11, Hopkins-
street. The wound of Westcott was dressed by Mr.
Child, and he was sent home, but no injury could
be discovered on Cook, though he seemed to be
much shaken by the fall. Ile was likewise sent to
his home. The other two men are detained at the
hospital, but are not considered in danger.

STRANGE, IF TRUE.—It was currently rumoured
in Darlington on Friday (says the Darlington Times)
that a man, named Ralph Morrell, well-known amongst
the lowest class of the population of Darlington, had, while
labouring under a fit of insanity, made admission connect-
ing him criminally with the sudden disappearance of a
gentleman, named Richardson, about five years ago. Mr.
Richardson was on a visit to Darling-ton fair, about that
period, and was seen late at night in the Mill Entry, near
the river, but was not seen alive afterwards. At that time
much sensation was created by the mysterious circum-
stances, it being pretty generally believed that foul play of
some kind had been used, so that the property the gentle-
man was thought to have in his possession at the time had
proved too strong a temptation for some unscrupulous
ruffians. Morrell, after being taken to the Darlington
Workhouse, has been removed thence to the lunatic asylum
at Sedgefield, where he at present remains. It is expected
ho will recover iu a few days, and then it will be seen
whether the affair will assume a more serious aspect than
it now presents.
TII E GALE AT WAKE FIE LD.--D uring Monday
neight and Tuesday morning a heavy storm of wind broke
over this town, and committed great damage to property.
In Westgate a handsome and commodious drill-shed and
armoury for the local rifle corps was in course of erection.
The woodwork for the roof had been fixed in its place,
and though it was of 60 feet span, and therefore of great
strength, and bound together by strong bands of iron, it
and a great portion of the brickwork were blown down,
thus entailing a loss of some hundreds of pounds upon the
contractors. Other buildings in course of erection have
also been blown down, many trees in the neighbourhood
uprooted, and much damage done to business premises by
the storm.