75 years after Bedenham explosion

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the Bedenham explosion. In this article, Joe Gingell recounts what happened that day.

In the morning of the 27 April 1951, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary armament ship Bedenham was unloading depth charges onto an alongside lighter.

Whilst the unloading was taking place one of the depth charges ignited.

It seems that this was due to chemical reaction of the protective paint of the depth charges when exposed to sun light.

Men on the quayside attempted to put out the fire.

However, noticing that the fire was getting worse they all withdrew except the sub-officer of the Dockyard Fire Service, George Campbell Henderson, who tried to put out the fire.  

Eventually, there was an explosion in the lighter which caused the fire to spread to the RFA Bedenham. Suddenly, there was a very violent explosion which lifted the bow of the ship from the water and onto the Gun Wharf whilst the rest of the ship sank immediately.

The Captain and the Naval Armament Supply Officer of the RFA Bedenham were both blown into the water but they were later rescued.

There were some very large pieces of the ship’s plating that had fallen in different areas in Gibraltar.

I remember seeing a very large piece steel plating opposite the Cathedral of St Mary the Crown and another one along Queensway then called Reclamation Road.

Mr Henderson was posthumously awarded the George Cross for bravery in attempting to put out the fire.

The King's Police and Fire Services Medal (for Gallantry) was also posthumously awarded to Albert Alexander Indoe, Chief Fire Officer, HM Dockyard, Gibraltar.

The Captain and the Naval Armament Supply Officer of the RFA Bedenham were both blown into the water but were later rescued.

Many buildings were extensively damaged in the explosion.

Amongst these were the Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned, the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, and the Convent.

It was reckoned that if had not been for defensive walls which deflected part of the explosion's blast, the damages would have been more extensive.

The explosion also delayed the housing programmed for the repatriates.

A placard placed at the Gun Wharf in 2011 lists the names of those who lost their lives in this incident.