Leeds nostalgia: Man falls 50ft... lands on feet

If you think freak weather is a modern phenomenon, think again because this week in 1948, snow was falling across the Pennines and even in the lower climes of Halifax and Morecambe. Sleet fell in Settle, with temperatures in Leeds dropping to just 2 Celsius.
By The Newsroom
Published 24th Apr 2018, 13:34 BST

In other news, one roofer had a lucky escape after he fell 50ft from a house he was working on in Whitby... and landed on his feet.

Albert Ferguson was said to have had a “miraculous escape from death” after he slipped and tumbled when the ridging gave way, throwing him down the roof and over the edge.

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As he fell, his leg struck an iron rung of the main ladder, which set him spinning. The result was he turned over in mid-air, such that, instead of landing on the concrete below, he ended up coming down feet first in a flower bed.

Workmates rushed to his assistance and found he had escaped with severe lacerations to his right knee and after being seen by doctors, he was sent home.

Some 1,300 men from Bywater Colliery staged a walkout in a dispute over the implementation of steel pit props. The grievance came about because miners argued wooden props gave a warning ‘crack’ before breaking, whereas steel ones did not. The walkout brought work to a complete standstill, meaning the daily output of 2,500 tons of coal was reduced to zero.

And finally, King George VI and Queen Mary, together with Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, appeared on the balcony at Buckingham Palace to be greeted by a rapturous crowd, with chants of “We want the king!”.

They had earlier been driven from St Paul’s Cathedral to the palace to mark their Silver Wedding anniversary.

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Related topics:LeedsHalifaxMorecambe