Remembering 33 victims of Dibbles Bridge disaster 50 years ago

THORNABY DAY-TRIPPERS DIED IN COACH TRAGEDY

- By NAOMI CORRIGAN

THORNABY came together for a 50th anniversary service to remember those lost in the Dibbles Bridge disaster.

St Paul's Church on Cambridge Road was packed as people gathered for a service before a new memorial tree and plaque were unveiled in the churchyard.

The event was attended by many relatives and friends of the 33 people who died on May, 27, 1975, when a coach carrying day-trippers from Thornaby to the Yorkshire Dales crashed at the bridge near Hebden.

The disaster left the Thornaby community in a state of shock and devastation. Mayor of Thornaby, Glenn Eastick told The Gazette the service was held not to commemorate the crash, but to honour those who lost their lives.

Conducted by Father John Swinhoe with a sermon led by Bishop of Whitby, the Rt Revd Barry Hill, those attending also included Stockton-born peer, Baron Wrigglesworth, who helped bring in the changes to coach regulation following the crash.