The White Lund Explosion | A Short Documentary | Fascinating Horror
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- Опубликовано: 5 июн 2024
- "On the 1st of October, 1917, a small fire began at a factory in Lancashire, England..."
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CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - Background
04:02 - The White Lund Explosion
09:38 - The Aftermath
MUSIC:
► "Glass Pond" by Public Memory
► "The Plan's Working" by Cooper Cannell
SOURCES:
► "News black out on devastating explosion" published by Lancashire Post, September 2017. Link: www.lep.co.uk/news/news-black...
► "White Lund National Filling Factory, Morecambe" by Tim Churchill, published by Contrebis, 2018. Available via: lahs.archaeologyuk.org/Contre...
► "Munitions Factories in Lancaster and Morecambe" by Christine Workman, published by Documenting Dissent. Link: www.documentingdissent.org.uk/...
► "White Lund Explosion, October 1917" published by Heysham Heritage Association. Link: www.heyshamheritage.org.uk/whi...
#Documentary #History #TrueStories
It's a very small thing, but as someone who works in communications, and has had to do crisis communications before, it genuinely warmed my heart to hear you mention the telephone operator and her role in aiding the efforts. It's not the most flashy job, especially during emergencies, and not one many people think of - but she rode out there in the midst of multiple explosions to work 24 straight hours to help coordinate the response, and it's really cool to see her actions recognised along with the others ❤ thank you as always for your extremely in-depth and respectful reporting!
Quite an inspiring story - ordinary people responding with real courage even heroism
They credited our 911 operator by name in the news when msu shooting happened and went on about how she kept the police and ems updated, preventing further victims. I thought it was very nice they held her up, I can't imagine dealing with all those calls❤
But she didn't receive any award..
💯
I too agree, it was very nice to mention the bravery of that woman for not giving up to get to her post.
I appreciate how you acknowledge the names of the victims, they were people just like us, not just numbers.
And the unsung heroes.
you are a duck not people
@@icanseeyou3418 That duck cares about the dead.
@@Heinz-bx8sdHeiny hole
Respects 🙏
The first order being to evacuate, instead of fighting the fire, saved a ton of lives in my opinion; get everyone to safety, then those who don't panic and keep their composure fighting the flames.
Hats off to the train conductor and engineer on quickly realizing the parked train was also a fire hazard and dashed towards the hellfire to prevent further loss of life.
And the fire companies deciding, we're not going to save this, fall back to protect the inhabited towns. Everyone had their heads on straight.
@@joserafaeldiazmarrero7668 Generally, I feel that in those days, British people still had the knack for terse common logic... comparatively at least...
@@joserafaeldiazmarrero7668 The most crucial thing was slowing the fire. This was NOT the worst case scenario. Worst case was if they hadn't tried to contain it. an unimpeded ammo cook-off would have been FAR worse, and if that train full of packed shells had gone off? oooh.... no telling how far the shrapnel the used to be a train would have been flung?
@@joserafaeldiazmarrero7668fire companies?
You know its HUGE relief to hear of an incident where the first people to know what is going on actually did the RIGHT things, the brave or sensible things!
It feels like most of the time we are hearing about how people ignored danger, or trying to save money over lives somehow. This place was built as safe as they had understanding to make it, built in a sensible place (for once), and people did their actual best to save lives. SO amazing and so gratifying! They did a very good job in a bad situation!
I agree, seems to be a rare case where all that could be done, was done.
I think it's also important to consider the fact that the country was at war at the time. This factory wouldn't have even existed for the purposes it did were it not for the great war.
It tends to put ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.
@@PaulRudd1941that might be precisely the explanation for why the order was to evacuate and not to just keep producing. Because there was no financial conflict of interest per se. Like there is in most other cases.
Almost every single disaster breakdown video is basically a video essay on why capitalism has failed the average laborer and why there will be no true consequences unless things fundamentally change.
Well said, very much agree
@@PaulRudd1941 I was thinking about that when he mentioned the two men going towards the factory to move the train cars. There was a lot of propaganda focused on duty to the country and your local community and on pulling together to succeed as a group, and I wonder whether that contributed at all to people's decisions. It's hard to say because my experience has been that barring outside influences people will often risk themselves to help each other anyway, but that sort of messaging can make a huge difference - a good example is from WWII when many countries that were threatened or occupied by the Nazi forces largely cooperated in handing over Jews while Denmark overwhelmingly did not, and in fact managed to evacuate 90% of the Jewish population over the span of just a few days when they received word that the Nazis were planning to arrest them. The difference had been the Danish government and Danish society in general putting an emphasis on socialist views of equality and refusing to compromise on them.
Can’t even express my relief when I heard that the man who saw the fire’s first order was to open the factory gets and let’s the workers RUN to safety. Anybody who loves this channel gets me.
Yep, these days it would be ‘if your building is not on fire or exploding you need to stay at your station,
@@intruder313Highly doubtful at a modern munitions factory bruh weve advanced in 107 years
I hope that Mary Wilkinson also received recognition for her heroism here too, coming into work and risking her own life to co-ordinate fire fighting efforts and save lives....her actions were just as heroic as those of the four men who received medals
I thought about her too. Telephone operators of those days had quite the complex job and to do it under those conditions for so long a period deserves respect.
I was saddened not to hear her name called.
It being 1917, probably not. But it was the hard work and fortitude of women like her that changed attitudes after the war, and eventually led to universal suffrage
Heroic? Yes. As heroic as stying on site of a massive fire place with thousands of bombs that can kill you immediately at any time? Not in my opinion.
@@Jess04x03It's a different scenario. It's one thing to be part of a catastrophic event - with adrenaline coursing though your veins and a sense that if you don't act accordingly, the blood is on your hands. It's another thing to willingly and knowingly take a slow bike ride into what might as well be a war zone, knowing you may die, and being thrown off your bike, but not choosing to give up. Most people wouldn't willingly "walk" to what might be their death.
It's a different kind of courage. More of an intellectual courage than a physical one. Still requires a supreme amount of heroism.
It's beyond miraculous that only ten people died in this disaster. I'd never heard of this before, so thank you FH for highlighting it. This is why keeping history alive is so important, that events like World War 1 are not forgotten. And those whose actions prevented this disaster being even worse are heroes
Forewarned is forearmed. If the nightwatch hadn't seen the fire early it'd have been BAD..... Those early firefighting attempts bought time to evacuate. If it hadn't been fought? dunno how bad it'd have been but MUCH worse.
Excellent video. I was born and grew up in Morecambe. I used to rent one of the surviving buildings from the munitions factory as a workshop many years ago. It Had huge bolts installed to hold it together and visible cracks through the walls from blast damage. I heard from an older guy who's father worked at the munitions factory that windows were blown out all over the Morecambe area and even in Grange and Barrow which are on the other side of Morecambe bay (about 7 to 10 miles over water).
Holy shit
We have an old ammo factory area on the edge of the city. The construction has massive thick walls but light roofs, so that if one bunker went off the shock waves shot up into the sky instead of blowing chunks of walls into the neighbouring bunkers.
I'm also from Morecambe. I worked for many years on the industrial estate which is now on the old White Lund site. Everytime anyone did any building work on the site, they would turn up unexploded shells.
The surviving building I know of is the old Engine Shed, which is now a part of Ken Allen's scrapyard. There is another building nearby at Morecambe Metals, which may be an original survivor, but I have no documentary proof (photos etc.)
A chunk of shrapnel from the explosion went through the roof of the church at Carnorth, seven miles away.
@@wirebrushofenlightenment1545 Morecambe metals used to have one of the surviving buildings but it's since been replaced with a metal shed. I had a similar building at the opposite end of the same road which has also now gone. It still had small gauge rail tracks coming into the building and an asbestos roof. I'm still amazed that such a small number of people died. Quick thinking saved many lives that night
@@bigratkiller1 - I take it you're a fellow White-Lundian then!
I wasn't sure about the Morecambe Metals building - it just had the look of the old War Ministry construction. Too sad that it's been pulled down.
There's also the other stories floating about that White Lund hosted an RFC training aerodrome in the later years of WWII. That's one I've spent any hours trying to pin down, and my feelings on it is that it's one of those inconclusive local tales.
These men and women who responded were just as brave as any soldier❤. RIP to them all.
To be blown off your bike TWICE on the way to work, proceed regardless, then work for 24 hours straight just to ensure communication for firefighters 💪💪💪
My father was involved in an ammo dump fire in North Africa, during WW2. I will always remember the laconic way he described being chased by a German 88mm flak round tumbling end over end towards him. He escaped, as I'm here to witness.
My, I wasn't expecting another WWI disaster already, though this one I had never heard of. This is yet another disaster you've covered where the low body count is the most surprising aspect.
With thousands of workers on site it was very fortunate that this happened during supper. And the presence of mind of the person that ordered the gates to be opened! Very lucky escape that so few died in this explosion.
Damn, the people in charge were not total failures of humanity this time. We get so accustomed to hearing stories about the people in charge not taking responsibility for their actions that this one feels uplifting. Not to downplay the tragedy of those who died, but it says a lot when most of the names of the deceased are firefighters and not workers. It means that most of the workers were kept safe by the actions of their supervisors
So many heroes in this story and so many things done correctly. Very different than most of your stories where safety is avoided by top officials and it is every man woman and child for themselves! Kudos to this factory and its workers for their amazing response and work to keep the place safe!
The list of heroes in this video is almost to great to count! What incredible men and women!
That's what I was thinking. All of the workers who stayed and fought, the firefighters and obviously the gentlemen that moved the train cars.
Wow. This is a textbook example of British efficiency in the wake of a massive disaster. The fact that only three (possibly four--one person was unidentified) factory workers perished is nearly miraculous.
I can't imagine the incredible stress everyone fighting the fires would've felt - always on edge, never knowing if the next second would wipe you off the earth but not being able to stop working to extinguish the flames. That would stay with you for years.
Teh only certainly is if you DON'T fire the fire... catastrophe awaits. Stand and fight.... or die. The firefighters bought time to evacuate. In catastrophes like this minutes mean life or death.
that's war for you.
@@marhawkman303very very easy to say sitting at home watching a youtube video about it lmfao
@@_wayward_494 You have no idea what it feels like to be in the "heat of the moment" do you?
Sometimes the only thing that goes through your mind is " I have a job to do."
You might think of covering the WW2 explosion at Fauld in Staffordshire.
The RAF Fauld explosion was a military accident which occurred at 11:11 am on Monday, 27 November 1944 at the RAF Fauld underground munitions storage depot in Staffordshire, England. It was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history and the largest on UK soil.
My Dad worked there after the war as they still stored munitions such as wartime tall boy bombs in the remaining parts of the store and even now they store fireworks there.
I live about a mile away from White Lund, it’s nice to hear a bit of local history from another perspective. Growing up in the area, we were always told local stories about this disaster. Some of the buildings are even still standing I believe, and the whole site looks totally different. You wouldn’t know such a disaster happened here unless you were told.
First thing I do on Tuesdays is have my morning coffee and watch fascinating horror. Thanks for all the truly fascinating stories and for always respectfully remembering the victims
My great aunt was in the canteen. She was rescued by, in her words, a very handsome soldier. She spent the night lost in the marsh terrified she would be killed by the lumps of hot mettle that were landing around her. I havent thought about her in years. I have many happy memories of that wonderful lady. Thank you for making this. Thank you for naming the lost. ❤
I listened to your entire catalogue of videos while painting my house when I first moved in so now every time I hear your intro music, I feel like I'm painting the house. Pleas enever change it
😂😂
I discovered this channel when I had Covid and was unable to get out of bed. I spent 2 straight days watching the back catalogue! Now the music always makes me grateful I don’t have covid any more 😅
I'm painting my house now. What a great idea!
We always look forward to your analyses. You always go in depth with your case discussions.
"We always look forward to your Wikipedia reads"
Fixed
@@Heinz-bx8sdThe fire does not have a Wikipedia entry.
Thank you for your continued dedication to making the names of the victims known, far too few channels do so.
Have a look at the Butte, Montana explosion in the 1800s. It's a devastating example of what happens if an entire fire department gets wiped out while responding to an incident.
Living in Butte, America for a decade now, he could do an hour long special on Butte Alone, between the Warehouse explosion and Granite Mountain mine fire. I'd love to see it.
Same could be said for the USS Forrestal fire in 1967. Entire firefighting crews were wiped out there. Also can be said for the Texas City Disaster in 1947
My Great Grandma was a Canary at the Barnbow, Filling factory #1 in Leeds, She was working when they had the Explosion there in 1916 but thankfully was in a distant part of the factory.
I’ve lived in Lancaster almost all my life and have never heard of this. Excellent history lesson 😊
Same! I heard there's currently a big fire in the Lune industrial estate, though. I'm so glad I don't live next to it anymore.
Same here!
There is a little memorial plaque just across from ASDA as you enter the estate.
28,000 views in just 4 hours!!!! That's awesome man! Been here since the start and am overjoyed to see you achieve such well deserved success!! Keep it up!
When it was still just theme park accidents! This channel has been worth it the whole time.
Mary Wilkinson's story is unbelievable!! That's true dedication to your fellow human being.
Thanks. You make some of the finest documentaries on RUclips!
"Munitions factory explodes" and "Death toll of only 10" are not two things that I thought would go together, but as so many people are pointing out - This is one of the instances where everyone in charge made the right decisions. Get everyone out. Let the firefighters do their jobs. Move the trains. When the thing can't be contained, send the firefighters to where they can be useful in town.
This could easily have been a significantly worse disaster, but thanks to these people, it wasn't.
Its tragic that there's one victim thats still not identified all these years later and i wonder why surely someone should have identified them by now
you referred to one person as _them_ .
Identified them by now sounds right to me
@@HemiChryslerI'm assuming English is not your first language?
@@HemiChrysler "They" and "them" have been used to refer to an individual person of an unknown gender for over 600 years. We're not told anything about the unknown victim other than they remain identified, which isn't enough to even guess at their gender. Ergo, "them" becomes the proper word to use to in this circumstance. Anyone that tells you that the singular use of they/them is a wholly modern phenomenon is either lying or dreadfully misinformed.
@@HemiChrysler Singular 'they' has been acceptable in English for two hundred years, Jane Austen used 'they' to refer to an individaul.
The insane bravery of those fighting the fires is astonishing. The railwaymen are a case in point.
It's not bravery. It's knowing that if they don't act things will get worse.
@@marhawkman303bravery is not the act of not being afraid, it’s the doing of an act in spite of being afraid, which all these people did
The bravery of those people who ran towards the fire.👍 I on the other hand would probably have been one of those who had to be rescued from the swamp the next day!🥴
😂
Amazing the heroism of all these humble workers and firemen!Thanks for bringing forward their names and deeds!A miracle no more casualties occurred.May they not be forgotten.
The two guys who got on the explosives train and moved it away while the train was on fire are insanely brave. I honestly can’t say if I’d have had the courage to do the same after witnessing the first explosion.
Incredible response. So many of these stories are about blatant negligence, but everybody did everything correctly here. The facility was constructed with safety measures in place, the order to evacuate was immediate, and the response effort was surgical. We mourn the ten who lost their lives, but the actions of all involved likely saved hundreds or thousands.
This one has a surprisingly good number of things done right and selfless heroes. It's so refreshing
As a Lancastrian now living abroad, this story of White Lund´s history was fascinating, and completely new to me. Thank you very much.
This is one of my all-time favorite YT channels. I await the newest episode every week. Please keep up the great work sir.
Same. And it's one of the few for which I click "like" even before the video starts because I know in advance it'll be good.
It's not very often on this channel that we hear that management and other "higher-ups" immediately did the right thing, and, acted swiftly in doing so. That was great to hear for a change but I was very surprised at how low the death count was, regardless. I thought for sure that it was going to be really high.
Fascinating indeed, how have I never heard of this before. I only live a short drive down the coast, and have visited Morecambe often, and yet this's a story I'd not come across. Such bravery by all those involved.
Love this channel, one of the only reasons I stay on RUclips. Extremely interesting events, many of which I would never have heard of (this included) unless you reported on it. Information is always accurate and you tell us when things are uncertain, and ALWAYS respectful and use the disaster to teach lessons and remember the lost. So glad you included Ms. Wilkinson in this story, as it seems a role that would be easily forgotten by many. Props to you my man, absolute gem of a channel and your hard work shows. Thank you 🙏🏼
Cudos to the men who moved the train cars at their own peril, and the woman who got blown off her bike twice but still got to work and helped out, and all the other unnamed heroes of that day.
You always find new stories to tell, not the usual ones that turn up.
I've been living in Lancaster for 10 years and I've never heard of this!
What a nightmare of an experience. Some rightful cool heads made some excellent calls during the fire, savng countless lives, property and assets. Thank you for covering this disaster. I'm not an Englishman, and I've never heard of it.
Even through WW2, ammunition plants were dangerous places to be. My grandfather worked at the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant in Illinois. Lucky for me, he was not on shift the night an explosion killed 48 workers. He was a plant fireman and was involved in the cleanup and recovery of what remains they could find.
finally someone that didn't ignore or drag their feet when an emergency was first noticed! he called the fire brigade, opened the gates for easier escape, etc etc. 1st response to get everyone to safety. and brave af workers trying to put out what they can.
If ever your children ask you how this small island built the modern world refer them too the story of the young telephone operator blown off her bike twice by bombs on her way too work and still arrived on time and did a 24hour emergency shift. ✊🏻🏴
Much respect to all the workers and especially the ones who risked their lives to save others here!
There was a similar incident in 1916 at a facility near Uplees, on the outskirts of Faversham in Kent. Over 100 people were killed in the blast, but I don't think it is widely known about outside of the local area. I'm not sure how much information about what occurred is even available. If there is enough available to make a video, I'm sure it would make an interesting subject.
Great video. Another one you may like to look into is the Low Moor disaster in Bradford. It's another of these wartime explosions that tragically took out all the fire brigade in attendance.
Never heard of this, excellent job exploring it as usual. You should look at the similar Silvertown explosion also in 1917, the Faversham Great Explosion of 1816 also during WWI, or the 1847 Faversham guncotton explosion.
Or, for something even less well-known from my hometown, the Gillingham Fair fire disaster (known as the Fireman's Wedding disaster) or the 1951 Gillingham bus disaster, (which actually took place in Chatham) which was the highest loss of life in a road accident until the 1975 Ribble Bridge coach crash.
You do a fantastic job of bringing events to a wider audience.
Wow! Thank you for the work you did to make this masterpiece. The heros in this are just amazing people, from the guys moving the rail cars to the operator fighting to get there and working 24 + is just amazing. The medals were very well deserved. Im still in awe of this story, thank you for sharing it was us❤
It was during WW1. I am quite surprised that it couldn't get any worst, thanks to the people made a valiant effort to save everything and everyone as much as possible. RIP to the people who loss their lives back then.
Great to see how your channel is growing! Thank you so much for excellent work, as always. Very entertaining.
This is actually the first time listening to where people did the right thing. They didn’t do it for the money but for the people that need saving. The company also did right by offering their employees two weeks worth of pay but also informing them to search for other jobs. It’s rare to hear that.
Glad I'm still up after 2am and able to catch the newest video right after it goes live. Keep em coming!
Thank you for your Humanity and class. Naming those young men, touched me.
Been following you for years. I have a lot of respect for you and your work
Thanks so much
Wow, incredible bravery all around, and amazing few deaths considering how many people seemed to be involved in the efforts to fight the fire.
From beginning to end, this has got to be one of my favorite videos. From the moment the supervisor saw the fire and ordered the evacuation to the firemen and workers to fighting the fire despite the severe danger the were in to the communications lady coming in despite knowing the danger thanks to being blown of her bike to the company handing out two weeks of pay while letting the workers know they had to find new employment. Rest In Peace to the firefighters and workers that lost their lives. Thank you for being heroes to the communities around you and giving the ultimatum sacrifice in the end.
Excellent research and presentation. I've read of a number of instances of munitions workers killed during both worlds wars. Few were from disasters such as White Lund. Thousands perished just from the everyday dangers, as Dr. Felton points out, of being around explosives and chemicals all day.
Nice to hear of a manager / foreman doing the right thing and valuing lives over property or profit. Sadly, it was a seemingly rare viewpoint back then, though it's still less common than it should be.
It’s very refreshing to hear a human voice narrating the video. Thank you for doing the job yourself. It matters. Thank you for bring this story in to 2023. History needs to be told.
Excellent video. These brave souls are worthy of our respect.
I appreciate how you put these short documentaries together and it reminds me of how precious life is.
Good day to you from Australia 🦘
Another excellent video. I appreciate the effort you put into these videos. Thank you
People studying wwi really don't think about the workers who had to make the deadly munitions as the engines of war. Very interesting documentary. So scary. Thank you Mr Nettle. Imagine moving railway cars full of munitions. That is true bravery of those who tried to contain the blaze.
Thank you for retelling this story. Amazing accounts of courage and selflessness!
They just dont make brave people like that anymore. 😢
Thank you for telling this story. The way you told it made me feel as if I was there. I could see in my mind everything that was happening.
Fascinating story that myself and probably others had never heard of this story. It's nice to see them highlighted.
By the way, railway 'cars' in the UK are called wagons as the 'car' name with regards to railway freight vehicles is an American definition.
Great video and I'm now a subscriber👍
It's sad that most oeople have never heard about this. Amazing brave people that all helped out and took it upon themselves to risk their lives .!!
I cannot overstate the level of respect I have for anybody who will, fully voluntarily, run into danger to save other people's lives.
That is a level of courage I cannot fathom.
ive worked on White Lund for years as a machinist and i never knew this story. I even had my lathe in Unit 6 not so long ago. The new unit 6 obviously.
Superbly narrated.
All the people who helped in this incident are incredible, the things they did to save others, putting their lives on the line for them, just absolutely incredible
I was born in kendal not far from morecambe but I'd never heard of this !!
Thanks for the vid , great as usual and done with respect .
Im always so excited to learn more history with your videos! ❤
Morecombe? Wait a minute... the Morecombe, where "Morecombe missile", John Mcguinness comes from? The all-time winner of the Tourist Trophy motorcycle race on the Isle of Men? No wonder he was so fast, given the explosive background. :))
This story, although about a fire and explosions, was uplifting. The doors were open so that the workers could escape and were also given two weeks' salary to find another place to work. And the men running to the fire to move the train cars was amazing.
Thank you for the respect you always show towards the victims in these sad events.
You make these videos very respectfully. I especially like the way you acknowledge the dead.
Best way to start your day, thank you for the video. Looking forward to the next.
I am from Lancashire but had never heard about this before. During WW2 my Grandma worked at the ROF munitions factory near Euxton, Chorley so it was chilling to hear this awful tragedy
A very detailed but tactful account of the disaster.
Thank you
Those train operators are absolute heroes. Mad respect to them and all the brave people who risked their lives
You have to love the company and their response to the explosion
“Here’s two weeks wages because of the fire! Oh you’re going to have to find another job.”
A typical form of gratitude from management .
I've been watching your channel for a while now. I live opposite the White Lund industrial estate and I had no idea this happened. Thank you.
The fact that only 10 people died is absolutely incredible (not incredible that they died, just that it was only 10). If just a couple things went differently there could have been so many more dead. With that many explosives it is an absolute miracle that no more people died.
Thanks, I live very near White Lund which is now a very busy industrial estate with numerous small and medium size businesses .
In years gone by when developing a new part of the estate, shells were still found occasionally, last one I remember was in 1997, just about all the land has been redeveloped now.
World war 2 also saw a big war effort in the area at Heysham with ICI making nitrogen compounds and Shell built an oil refinery to make aviation fuel, the argument being the location was beyond the range of the German bombers, which was not true as the bombers flew very close over the bay to Vickers at Barrow.
The lack of reporting on this event is really disturbing, and the worst part is it happens a lot with disasters at explosive plants. In the region I live in Wisconsin, there was a fire at the Barksdale Dupont explosives factory in 1952 that caused two explosions over the course of several hours. The first explosion killed 8 workers without leaving any bodies and shattered every window in the town 7 miles away across the lake. Unfortunately news reporters were completely barred from reporting on the disaster, and these days very little information is available online at all.
Brilliant, thanks for sharing a fascinating bit of local history from my home town
Good on ya for including the local heroes in your channel. You have a new sub.
I love your videos. Very informative and respectful to the victims.
Always look forward to a Tuesday morning video by FH
It doesn't matter how stressed I am. I always listen to a fascinating horror video. I have to.
As usual a FANTASTIC VIDEO. I know I read about this before but i never knew of the PEOPLE!!! Such bravery n tragic... Yet praise God i can't believe there weren't more casualties!!!
This isn’t a story about an explosion. It’s a story about heroes and selflessness
Now this rings a bell. A book by Atlantic Press, "Railways and War, WW1" published some years ago included a photograph of a devasted goods train and yard, blown to pieces in an ammo disaster 'somewhere in the North of England' and which at the time of publication was still covered by the Official Secrets Act.No details were available.
I wonder if it was connected with this disaster?
And, in all sincerity, hats off to the brave men and woman who stood fast, acted on their own guts and initiative and did their duty throughout that awful day.