Marchioness disaster
The
Marchioness disaster occurred on the
River Thames in
London,
England, on
20 August 1989, when the pleasure boat
Marchioness sank after being run down by the
dredger Bowbelle. The two boats collided under
Cannon Street Railway Bridge. 51 of the 132 passengers on the
Marchioness, who were attending a private birthday party, were drowned. Many of the victims were young people working in the fashion industry, and included Francesca Dallaglio, sister of
Lawrence Dallaglio, who later became captain of the
England national rugby union team.
The disaster was found by the Marine Accidents Investigation Board to have been caused by the poor visibility from each ship's wheelhouse, the fact that both vessels were using the centre of the river, and that no clear instructions were given to the look-out at the bow of the
Bowbelle. The skipper of the
Bowbelle, Douglas Henderson, was tried for failing to keep a proper look-out but after two juries were deadlocked he was formally acquitted.
A
Coroner's
inquest on
April 7,
1995 found the victims had been unlawfully killed.
John Prescott as
Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions ordered a judicial inquiry under Lord Justice Clarke on
August 18,
1999.
Subsequently the
Government asked the
Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the
Port of London Authority and the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) to work together to set up a dedicated Search and Rescue service for the tidal River Thames. Consequently, on the
2 January 2002, the RNLI set up four lifeboat stations at
Gravesend,
Tower Pier,
Chiswick Pier and
Teddington.
A memorial to the victims can be found close to the site of the disaster in the Nave of
Southwark Cathedral.
*
List of United Kingdom disasters by death toll*
List of wars and disasters by death toll (worldwide)
*
List of disasters (by subject)
*
Formal Investigation Report into the disaster*
Details of the memorial in Southwark Cathedral
