On my trip to photograph the Purton Hulks (Thursday 9th February, 2023) I used my zoom lens to photograph hulks visible at low tide in the middle of the River Severn. A month or so later, Carolyn Cross identified them for me as being what remains from the Severn Railway Bridge Disaster. This extract from Stroud Times summarises the crash:
"On the night of October 25th 1960, tankers the Wastdale H and Arkendale H collided in thick fog on the River Severn near Sharpness Docks ... Five sailors died in the disaster ... [the] two barges collided and subsequently struck the old rail bridge".
Above the two barges after the crash, taken from River Severn Tales by Chris Witts. Severn Railway Bridge Disaster.
Above 2 photos from Witts, C. (2010). Severn Bridge Disaster. River Severn Publications.
After rescue attempts were exhausted, on 30th October the army used explosives to sink the ships to prevent any danger of them moving with the coming high tide. Consequently, these hulks can be seen at low tide. The Severn Railway Bridge was finally demolished in 1967. All that remains today is the circular stone structure of the swing bridge on the side of the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal. There is a memorial to the Severn Rail Bridge disaster at Lydney harbour to those lost in the disaster.
View of crash site (mid river) at low tide from Purton, in the foreground we have the Purton Hulks
Watch this video by Wotton's Matt Bigwood. Features Chris Witts who witnessed the disaster and talks very eloquently in the video about it. Taken from Remembering the Severn Railway Bridge Disaster | Stroud Times,