Bridgetown Tragedy Print Page 
A fallen power line caused the death of the four victims in March 1954. There were five severely injured children and two injured adults. Doctors, nurses, firemen and about 200 people from Bridgetown came together in a mammoth attempt to save the children.
Three boys and a man are already dead, and another boy critically ill after a mass electrocution at Bridgetown, 180 miles south of Perth yesterday. Those dead are Mr. Jack Houston (40, married), with two children, a State Electricity Commission employee, Graham Michael Whiegell (8), and his brother Kenneth Leslie Whiegell (11), who died later in the Bridgetown Hospital in an iron lung, and Adrian Lockley, aged 13. Jack Houston, jun. (8) is critically ill in the Bridgetown Hospital. Discharged from the hospital with burns are Clifford Lockley (3) and his brother Allan Lockley (5). Two other children ran home suffering from burns to body and legs. Their condition is satisfactory. Two pet dogs playing with the children were killed instantly.
The tragedy struck when the children, playing in a paddock along a road, ran into a death trap. caused by a fallen electric power wire, which had fouled a small square of wire fences and activated a nearby creek. The children had waded into the creek and were immediately shocked by the electrical current. Running out, screaming. they rushed into the live wire fences and were nearly all caught by the power. Their screams brought Mr. Jack Houston. sen., rushing to the scene. He attempted to pull the children away from the fence but was shocked himself and fell back. His wife, Mrs. Vivienne Joyce Houston (35) also rushed to the fence and received a shock. She was taken to the Bridgetown Hospital where her condition is satisfactory Mr. Dick Franks, of Bridgetown, received a shock as he prised two children off the fence with a green tree limb.
Doctors, nurses, ambulance bearers, and volunteers worked for more than six hours in an effort to save the victims. An iron lung was rushed from Bunbury, 62 miles away in 49 minutes, and was soon in operation. Local nurses administered oxygen.
Queensland Times (Ipswich) (Qld.) 15 March 1954.
Two memorials will be dedicated to the memory of the people who died and were injured in a tragedy that took place in Bridgetown on March 14, 1954.
After reading the story of the tragedy in the Donnybrook - Bridgetown Mail last year, local man Harold Thomas said he wanted to set up a memorial recording the families’ losses, and for future generations in Bridgetown, so that they would know about the anguish suffered by the families involved and the hundreds of towns people who tried to help. Mr Thomas, after getting approval from the families, formed a small working committee to decide the form that the memorial would take, and then put the wheels into motion with a promise that the memorial would be ready for dedication within a year.
A bench seat with memorial plaques will be set up in the centre of Bridgetown, outside The Stables IGA, and a memorial made in black granite will be set up on a reserve adjacent to the site of the tragedy, on Gifford Street.
Many people and organisations have helped this project to come to fruition on time, and the dedication will take place on the anniversary of the tragedy on Saturday March 14 this year, as promised.
Some of the organizations who helped were Bridgetown Lions, Rotary Club of Bridgetown, The Bridgetown Freemason’s Lodge, Denis and Mark Hargreaves of Joystone Granite, Talison Lithium Limited, The Stables IGA, The Shire of Bridgetown Greenbushes, The Bridgetown Cidery and Bridgetown’s Grumpy Old Men. Many donations were received from individuals, and the raffle set up to help raise the funds received excellent support from the people of Bridgetown.
The dedication at both sites will be led by Shire President Tony Pratico, who is also part of the committee.
The Bench Seat will be dedicated at 10.30am, and the Memorial will be dedicated at 11am. Members of the families who lost members will be attending from around Western Australia and South Australia. All visitors will be welcome to attend.
Bridgetown Cidery has opened their carpark for people who wish to attend and will be providing light refreshments after the two dedications.
Excerpt from Bunbury Mail (WA) 18 February 2015.
Location
| Address: | 109 Hampton Street, Stables IGA Store, Bridgetown, 6255 |
|---|---|
| State: | WA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -33.959239 Long: 116.136636 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Seat |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Tragedy |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 14-March-1954 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 14-March-1954 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Saturday 14th March, 2015 |
|---|
Bridgetown`s Darkest Day
Sunday, 14th March, 1954
In loving memory of the four who died, and the many people who tried to save them. "Those who were taken suddenly from us tragically, but forever remain in our memory, we shed tears that they are gone, but we smile because they lived." Jon Houston 2014
A record of this tragedy can be viewed at the Cidery Bridgetown and at the Bridgetown Library.
