was slightly injured in the sudden stop of his train, but otherwise fine. Fire In the aftermath of the collision, as in earlier railway crashes at Quintinshill, Hawes Junction and Thirsk, a fire broke out. It is believed that the gas cylinders of the first four cars were punctured and a cloud of gas quickly formed under the bridge and a fire broke out. Although many likely perished in the collision, it seems likely that the majority of the 14 passenger fatalities were due to the fire. Seven of the 11 cars of the mail train (the two vans, the brake van, both composites and both 3rd class coaches) were completely destroyed by the fire. In a combination of the fire and the collision, the ninth to seventeenth wagons were completely destroyed. Two of the GWR goods train's wagons (the two the mail train clipped) were both completely destroyed. Victims Intense fire made identification of the dead and even a complete body count difficult, but it is believed that 15 people died and a further 23 were injured. (The official report lists 16 deaths and 41 injuries). Among the dead were stated to be the remains of two small children, who have never been identified. According to local accounts, from 1929 until the late 1950s, an unknown woman dressed in black used to regularly visit the memorial to the crash. But she has not been seen for several decades. There is a memorial to remember those who lost their lives at St James Church in Charfield, where the two unknown children are buried. Archie Ayres was the local carpenter in 1928 and was regularly employed by the local undertakers, Goscombes, to make coffins. He made the coffins for the fifteen people killed in the train crash. According to his daughter, Mrs Smith (née Ayres) in 1999, he made thirteen coffins plus two small boxes. The latter contained the remains that could not be associated with particular individuals. J.A.B. Hamilton had visited him and obtained the same information while researching for his 1968 book. According to L T C Rolt (who also perpetuates the story of two children) in Red for Danger, the crash blazed for twelve hours. Aftermath Seconds after the collision, Button informed the company control office at Fishponds of the accident and requested ambulances, maintenance staff, cranes and other assistance to be sent from Bristol and Gloucester. Guard