East Cleveland Image Archive

Not the way to Skinningrove a United bus in the woods at the bottom of Mill Bank.
(photo courtesy of Eric Johnson.)

Another of Eric Johnson’s photo’s showing a bus where a bus shouldn’t be. In the wood at the bottom of Mill Bank. We understand the unfortunate driver was called Paul (Sprag) Hart from Loftus; the brakes failed on the bus and so failed to negotiate the hir-pin bend on Carlin How bank. The bus ended up down the bank side. Two hours later Paul was back in the driving seat after crawling back up the bank, his only injury were cuts to the inside of his mouth sustained from the broken glass. Today the crash barrier would prevent such an incident occuring.

Thanks to Terry Clark and and Mr Bint for the updates.

This is the first of four photos taken by Ted Morgan and loaned to us by Eric Johnson, I think that if an incident like this happened today the traffic would be stopped, not left to go by as though nothing unusual was happening.  By the look of the car, a Morris Minor, I think ( but I know you people out there will correct me if I am wrong) the yearwould be  late 50’s early 60’s.  Do you remember this accident?

Bryan Richardson believes:”that the car with the damaged front could have been driven by Richard Aitken or Aitkin who I think lived in Wood View?” Can anybody assist with this query?

The bus driver may well have been asking this question as the flames sweep across the road towards the bus.

(photographed by Ted Morgan loaned by Eric Johnson)

Okay own up were you one of the two boys watching the firemen?  I don’t think they would have been allowed  to be so close  today.

(photographed by Ted Morgan loaned by Eric Johnson)

Looks to me as though the fireman walking up the bank has had enough, I could have put the caption ’Had Enough I Am Going Home’ but I am sure that is not the case it must have been a very trying time for all of them.  Please let us know if you have any recolection of this incident or know the names of any of the people involved.

(photographed by Ted Morgan Loaned by Eric Johnson)

I do have some information on this photograph kindly loaned by Kathleen Hicks.

 Skinningrove night shift coming home, when the accident happened and John McLaren crawled to Loftus, after having his leg brken in the accident, to get help.  John Bennet snr. drove council break down vehicle that hauled the bus from the beck. The bus had gone straight along the front of Kilton Mill (mill building) and over the bank into the stream.   Looks as though there is snow on the ground.

Do you know anyone else involved in this accident?

Enough of an unusual spectacle to atttract a crowd of bystanders – but was it?  In those not-so-far-off days of crash gear boxes and cable brakes it only took a missed gear-change to set you off in a rearwards direction!  On todays crowded roads it would have ended up with a multiple vehicle collision.

(Image courtesy of Howard Wilson).

Thanks to Howard Wilson for this photo of a bus that crashed through the bridge at the bottom of Loftus Bank.  The same bus is featured in another image.

Howard’s grandfather worked for Garbutt Bros  and may have been called out to the rescue.