Heroic rescue for man dangling from girder 50 meters high

Edward Medal for bravery

James Dally, wearing the Edward Medal. From the Great Western Railway Magazine, September 1915.

James Dally, wearing the Edward Medal. From the Great Western Railway Magazine, September 1915.

In October 1914 James Dally saved a colleague from a 52m fall from a viaduct. He was awarded the Edward Medal for his bravery.

On 28 October 1914, the Crumlin viaduct, near Newport, south Wales, was being painted by using a staging of planks timber supports. Around 5:00 pm, one of the supports broke, and the foreman, Mr Skevington, fell 52m (175 feet) to his death into the goods yard below. The second man, Thomas Bond, just managed to grip onto the main bridge structure in time, but was left dangling in mid air...

Heroic rescue

The Crumlin Viaduct. The location of the rescue is marked with a red dot.

The Crumlin Viaduct. The location of the rescue is marked with a red dot.

Bridgeman James Dally, of Crumlin, was nearby, supervising the operation. He immediately crawled out from the gangway on to the diagonal bracings - which were a mere eight centimetres wide:

"I asked him to swing his legs in an upward direction, so as to get them around the stretcher, if possible. This he succeeded in doing. I then got hold of Bond's legs; & told him to move one hand at a time & by that means he was drawn nearer to the gangway & when he was near enough I got a better hold of him, & eventually landed him safely on the gangway."

According to the London Gazette, "The man would probably have lost his life had it not been for the courage and presence of mind shown by Dally." Bond himself had no doubts: "I was suspended in the air; but if Mr Dally had not been on the gangway at the time, & taken the action he did I could not have saved myself... I owe a deep debt of gratitude to Mr Dally, for had it not been for the encouragement he gave me, & the prompt effort he made, I would have undoubtedly met the same fate as Mr Skevington."

Acts of courage in other industries

James Dally's Edward Medal, Industry, Second Class (bronze), front view.

James Dally's Edward Medal, Industry, Second Class (bronze), front view.

In the event, Dally was awarded the Edward Medal, which he received from King George V on 12 July 1916. This medal had been created in 1907 to reward "heroic acts performed by miners and quarrymen" and in 1909 its award was extended to acts of courage in other industries.

The Crumlin Viaduct was 512m (1,680 feet) long and rose some 60m (200 feet) above the valley of the Ebbw. The viaduct was opened on 1 June 1857 and by 1863 was part of the Great Western Railway network; it was demolished in 1965-66.

Background Reading

For Those in Peril, by Edward Besly. Published by the National Museums & Galleries of Wales (2004).

Gallantry: its public recognition and reward in peace and war at home and abroad by A. Wilson and J. H. F. McEwen. Published by Oxford University Press (1939).

Comments (3)

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Marc Haynes Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales Staff
30 October 2017, 15:35
Hi Pat,

I've passed your email address on to Judith Pinnell as you asked.

Best wishes,

Marc
Digital Team
Pat Smail
30 October 2017, 12:09
FAO
Amazing story!
Judith Pinnell We are collating a history of Crumlin and would be very interested in any information about James Dally.
Can you pass our email on to Judith? Thank you.
www.facebook.com/FotCN/
Judith Pinnell
5 July 2017, 18:05
James Dally was my great grandfather, I have the citation that goes with this medal if you are interested in seeing it