The West Winford Incident

by John Parker

  “Good trip down?”

  “Only from Devizes this morning. I came down last night.”

  They settled comfortably and Tony gave an outline of the Section’s organisation and work. Dave had learned at his interviews that the Strategic Supplies Authority, which had been set up in January 1967, had its headquarters in London. In addition to all the working units around the country, there was a Central Laboratory for Pure Research at Slough and themselves, the Scientific Services Department, in Wiltshire. The Scientific Services Department was divided into sections including the Materials Section.

  Tony explained that the work with which they were involved at the moment was mainly concerned with the power stations now under the Authority’s control, whilst that from other sources was sporadic. He thought it would be best if David familiarised himself with the routine work and later they would discuss a longer term project, which he was hoping David would take on.

  “Right, let’s go and meet the inmates.” The usual flurry of handshakes and confusion of names, which would only become fixed in Dave’s mind during the next week or so.

  During his second week he was pleased to receive an invitation to join some of his colleagues for a few drinks at The Bear in Devizes. This was enjoyable, as was the local, Wadworth’s 6X, brew. It was also useful in getting at least some of those names memorised. Of all the groups within the Materials Section, Dave thought that his was the most interesting, based upon what he learned about the others that evening, with the possible exception of the Fracture Group whose work sounded fascinating. The fact that they made extensive use of the Scanning Electron Microscope (the new toy) added to its appeal.

  *

  This is rapidly losing its appeal, thought Sue. Exciting though the prospect of moving was, packing was becoming a chore. Would they need these stair rods? Would those curtains fit? The removal men would be here any minute and Dave should be back by now. Just going for petrol, he had said, but she supposed that he had thought of a final chum to see. She was anxious to check what would fit into the boot of their Morris 1100, as she hoped that they could take some of the more fragile items with them. They boasted ‘Fowler’s Removals – Safe in Our Hands’, but who was to know until it was too late?

  The van arrived. It was actually happening. Sue was pleased to see Dave following. During the next three or four hours, beds, tables, chairs, wardrobes, books and the rest of the paraphernalia that made up late 1960s family life, were hustled into the van’s interior, packed and arranged with the deft skill of a dry stone waller. So much stuff into such a small volume.

  “See you down there missus.” And off they went crawling down the street.

  Following the last hugs and waves from the neighbours and accompanied by the girls’ sniffs and tears, they drove away to their new life.

  On their arrival the girls made straight for their respective rooms, armed with posters and Sellotape. This was a civilised invasion as the quarrels over the allocation of rooms had been fought and settled following an earlier visit the previous month.

  Dave and Sue had three days for combined activity before Dave was due back at work. Sue had devised a plan to maximise her husband’s usefulness during this period. The main items on her agenda included assembling the beds, followed by fitting curtain rails and light shades. There were extra shelves needed here and there and that bathroom cabinet had to go. As for the boxes containing Dave’s books, college stuff and the – ‘goodness knows what you want to keep those for’ – keepsakes, they were at the back of the queue. A 1947 Football Annual? – I ask you.

  So, Sunday night already.

  “Let’s leave it at that,” suggested Dave, “I don’t want to miss the moon landing, it will be on TV shortly.”

  Sue and Dave settled with their daughters to witness this astonishing event. At last, Neil Armstrong descended the steps and his fuzzy black and white image could be discerned. After a brief comment upon the powdery surface, he announced “That’s one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.”

  “Well,” said Dave, “I guess we beat him to it with a sizeable leap of our own.”

  It was gripping television. They remained to watch Buzz Aldrin join his colleague before going to bed.

  2

  During the following weeks life settled down into some sort of routine for Dave, both at work and at home. He had successfully assimilated most of his colleagues’ names and learned something about them. He had discovered that he had much in common with most, being of similar age and being imported from outside Wiltshire. This made for a greater willingness to socialise than perhaps would have been the case had they all been locals. He had formed a particularly easy relationship with Harry Slack, known as Gritty, who, though employed as a scientific assistant, was mature both in years and certainly in common sense.

  The work in his group was going well and he’d been pleased to find that he had a lot of contact with other groups, as investigations often overlapped into more than one area of expertise. This had been particularly true in the case of the Fracture Group, where Mike Pearson, the leader, had been especially cooperative. He had given Dave an insight into the basic principles of electricity generation as this was the main source of their work.

  A few days later Dave was called into his Section Head’s office to discuss the proposed long term research project. This would entail the design, setting up and running of a corrosion test facility at Thornton Power Station. The plan was to use this facility to evaluate the suitability of some of the recently developed materials, for possible use in power station cooling water systems. Tony concluded by requesting that Dave should draw up a programme to get things moving.

  Dave was both enthusiastic and excited at the prospect.

  *

  Sue’s initial excitement with the move was quickly waning; she had thought that it would be so different. The countryside was lovely and more than matched her expectations, but the life itself? It had been over a month since the move but she had not settled and, with the girls starting their new school, things were likely to get worse. Dave didn’t understand what it was like day in and day out in what, for her, was still a strange place. Hardly any contact with other people and those that she did meet were by and large – well! One of Dave’s colleagues, Harry Slack, was nice enough and he had brought his wife Mary around to tea. Dave had encouraged Sue to accept Mary’s invitation to return the visit, they were only just along the lane, which she finally had done. She bought a colourful plant from the village shop to take but, although she knew it was silly, she was apprehensive.

  Through the front gate, the house was modest, typical of most of the village, but the garden was immaculate. That set the tone for everything else. Mary, a plump, fresh faced woman, was welcoming enough, a typical country woman who, with her husband Harry, formed one of the few local couples amongst the laboratory staff. The house interior matched the garden. It wasn’t as spacious or elegant as her brother’s house, of course, but it was a surprise being in this out of the way place and looking so ordinary from the outside.

  “You’ll have to take us as you find us,” Mary had said as she ushered Sue into the parlour. My God, thought Sue, whatever had Mary thought of their place?

  “Be with you in a tick. I’ll just get the bread out of the oven, then we can have a cuppa.”

  Sue looked about her. Everything perfect. The row of books in an alcove was neatly aligned and, she noted, all in alphabetical order by author. There were half a dozen hunting prints around the wall and many of the ledges and shelves supported vases of flowers, the latter being home grown, no doubt. I bet she even vacuums under the sofa cushions, Sue thought maliciously. Sue, though by no means slovenly, had a pragmatic approach to housework; it was certainly not her mission in life. She was fortunate that Dave was sympathetic to this view and providing the house and garden had the superficial air of not being completely neglected, he was happy.

  “Right, here we are at last,” said Mary, e
ntering with a tray bearing tea pot, cups and saucers. She went back into the kitchen and returned with scones, jam and plates.

  “I do hope you’ll like these, all home-made, of course, and what about some cream?”

  “Gosh, no thank you, there’s so much here,” replied Sue, surprising herself with her genuine admiration.

  “Well, if you’re sure, but you’ll need to work at it if you’re going to fill out a bit. We village ladies won’t feel that you’re one of us till you’ve rounded out some.”

  The tea and scones were delicious and the conversation convivial. Sue relaxed a little. Although Mary did show some interest in Sue’s affairs, for the most part she pressed on with matters of a domestic nature. Sue learned that Mary’s washing was the envy of the lane and moreover, it was a pretty smart neighbour whose laundry was on the line before hers on a Monday morning. Following these instructive remarks, Mary outlined the social gatherings to which most of the village ‘girls’ subscribed. She felt sure that Sue would enjoy them and she would be happy to introduce her. With commendable self-restraint, Sue maintained a look which belied her horror at the thought of patchwork quilting, brass rubbing and the like, suggesting that she would certainly consider these pursuits when she had more free time.

  As she made her way home, Sue, perhaps unfairly, suspected that all the other women-folk hereabouts were similarly indoctrinated. The sight of her own, less than perfect, interior was welcome indeed.

  *

  Dave sensed it. Sue, though to all appearances her normal self, was, to his internal radar, a little off key. Subtle signs, just a hint of brusqueness; a diminished enthusiasm in her responses as he eulogised over the minutiae of his work.

  After tea Dave gently probed the reason for Sue’s mood. His wife discoursed at some length the quite reasonable grievances of her present state, which really amounted to the lack of anything meaningful to do, certainly nothing locally.

  “Just listen to this,” she complained, picking up the current copy of the local weekly newspaper. “Bear in mind this is a front page headline; ‘Wasp Nest Poses a Problem at Chippenham’. That just about says it all.”

  She had received ample confirmation of the limited horizons of most of the locals during her visit to Mary’s. It may be that Harry Slack had always been accustomed to a devoted house slave but Dave could forget it.

  “Surely there are some things that Mary isn’t into,” suggested Dave. He could see Sue’s point, however, he was just taken aback at the sudden and unexpected outburst.

  “Nothing very local,” she replied. “Now that you use the car everyday it’s more difficult.”

  “I could leave the car some days,” supposed Dave. “I could travel with Gritty, we could share in turn.”

  “But it wouldn’t be on a regular basis. There are times when you need the car without warning, such as when a sudden problem arises at one of the sites. I know that it’s not your fault but you do see my point?” Dave readily gave his wife his understanding.

  *

  Time for the girls to start their new school. Although this was a tense time for them, it was even more so for their mother, who regarded herself the prime instigator behind the move down south. The wisdom of that decision would, to a large extent, be judged by how well the girls settled. The timing of the move was convenient as Jo was about to begin the build up to her ‘O’ level examinations. Although she wouldn’t be sitting them this year, she had already been required to select her subjects. The head mistress of their new school had assured Sue that she had slotted Jo into her preferred choices.

  Sue was nervous and went with her daughters to the bus pick-up point on this first morning. If they were honest, both Jo and Katy would have preferred that she hadn’t. Becoming accepted by one’s peers in a new place would be difficult enough and having Mummy as escort would do nothing to help the process.

  The coach arrived. Sue’s hesitant half-wave was resolutely ignored by the girls. The thoughts of Jo and Katy when they returned home after this first day or, indeed, for the next several days, were not made public, but Dave and Sue took comfort from the absence of any negative feedback. They assumed it would be unlikely that Jo would suffer in silence.

  As the days went by Dave felt confident enough about the girls to surprise Sue with the suggestion of a few days away. He had arranged for her parents to come down and look after things whilst they took a short break. His assumption that this was just what Sue needed seemed justified judging from her excited reaction.

  “All you have to do is put your best frock and some outdoor things into a suitcase and be ready to go first thing on Saturday.”

  As they passed through Minehead, Sue recalled their last visit to Lynton. Fifteen years, almost to the day.

  “What a lovely surprise,” she exclaimed, as they drove over Lyn Bridge and up Church Hill, before turning right into North Walk. This was where they had stayed during their honeymoon. Sue jumped out and began to open the car boot.

  “What on earth are you doing?” asked Dave, with some amusement. Sue stopped, looking rather hesitantly at her husband. “I just thought you’d like the view from here. They’re probably fully booked anyway.” As he said this he led her a little way back along the lane to the bridge over the Cliff Railway and pointed across the valley. The view, yes she remembered. When they had last been to Chough’s Nest they had admired the view eastwards across to the wooded hill with the imposing Tors Hotel nestling amongst the trees.

  “Come on then,” chivvied Dave, “let’s get on.”

  “You mean to say that we’re not stopping after you brought me all the way up here?” Sue found difficulty in keeping the disappointment from her voice.

  “You never listen to what I say, do you? I just knew you’d forget. What a memory.”

  Sue looked abashed. “What are you talking about? What have I forgotten?”

  “The last time we were here, in 1954, I distinctly remember, as we were taking our last look across to the Tors, I said that the next time we came that’s where we’d be staying.”

  Sue was flabbergasted but overjoyed. They unpacked in a leisurely fashion and later took a short stroll along the paths surrounding the hotel. Looking down upon the lower village of Lynmouth, at the toy-town cottages leading along to the small harbour, Sue recalled that, at the time of their honeymoon, the newly built road and the village itself had only just been reopened following the terrible flood damage two years earlier.

  *

  He stopped abruptly; began shaking uncontrollably as he relived the terrible moment. Just an ordinary day unfolding in the way so many had over the past four years. The early lunch – he was on afternoons that week. The two mile cycle ride, familiar faces and predictable banter with his workmates – just an ordinary day. The familiar routine, taken for granted, transformed in a split second. Not uncommon, it happened all the time, life changing in an instant, ordinariness twisted and disfigured into chaos – but always to other people. He could never return.

  “Please accept our condolences and don’t hurry, we’ve plenty of time,” soothed the dark-suited chairman. Someone placed a glass of water at his elbow. Even sitting in the calm surroundings of the ‘Raleigh Suite’ of the Forest Lodge Hotel he felt overwhelmed. Beads of perspiration broke out on his forehead. He sat facing the panel of four with a younger man to his right taking notes, all exuding sympathy. It had been three days ago, but recalling the events faithfully – he was obliged to be accurate – was an effort of will. His pulse raced, it was impossible not to react, recalling the events meant reliving them and this was too distressing.

  “Perhaps it would be easier to answer questions to begin with before making a formal statement?”

  “Yes, if you will…”

  The chairman leaned forward and spoke quietly.

  “If you can tell us just where you were standing at the time of the incident. We have a plan view of the turbine hall on the board there and Mr Harris will mark the spot for you.
”

  “I was between the west wall and Number 1 turbine, Sir, just alongside the L.P. cylinder.”

  “About here?” asked Mr Harris pointing to the diagram.

  “A bit lower, yes, there. Just talking to Harry and then this almighty bang and whoosh… it missed me by inches… I just ran for cover… I left Harry… a good mate… I just ran… I… I… Oh! God.”

  The secretary rose to comfort the man who was sobbing noisily.

  “I think that we’re going to have to leave it for now gentlemen. Don’t worry, Mr Winscombe, we can leave it until another time. We are likely to be several more days carrying out our enquiries.”

  *

  It was going to be so good just to be able to relax for the next few days. After showers, the happy couple went down to dinner which, together with the wine, was excellent. They left the dining room feeling pleasantly full and slightly tipsy. And so to bed. The old married pair just lay for a while holding hands, each with their own special memories. This led to an increasing level of intimacy, which was considerably more assured than had been the case on their earlier visit.

  The following days were pleasantly spent revisiting some of the places from their earlier stay, but this time they were blessed with beautiful weather. During the drive home they chatted about their new life. Dave reassured Sue that he was getting on top of the job and so he would now be working less overtime. This being the case, he thought that their next priority should be to see how they could work together to improve things for her. To Sue this was welcome news and seemed a fitting end to a wonderful break. She relaxed in her seat, at least until the Wiltshire border, when her concerns about the welfare of the family gradually infiltrated her mood. She had no cause to be anxious, she realised, when they arrived home and were showered with a week’s worth of news. Both Jo and Katy had clearly settled.

  3