Abbeystead
Abbeystead is a village in
Lancashire,
England. In
1984, 16 people died in an
explosion in the village.
On
23 May 1984, 44 people were attending a presentation at a valve house at the outfall end of the Lune/Wyre Transfer Scheme in Abbeystead intended to explain the effects of the scheme on winter flooding in the lower Wyre Vally. During the presentation, water was pumped over the weir deisgned to regulate the flow of water into the Wyre. When the pumping commenced, however, there was a bright flash followed by an explosion that killed 16 visitors, injured 22 more and severely damaged the valve house.
The explosion was caused by
methane, which had built up in valve house, seeping in from the Wyresdale tunnel. An unidentified source ignited the gas and caused the expolsion. The source of ignition could have been an electrical fault, but it was suggested that a visitor may have tried to light a
cigarette, since smoking was permitted in the valve house.
