HMS Lowestoft - HMS Lion Forth Road Bridge Incident

A witness account of the collision with Lion by Leading Patrolman David Addis. HMS Lion

The Admiral flying his flag in Lion was Frankie Twiss who planned a sail past of his flag ship by the ships in company, he order all the ships to slip and proceed up the Forth towards Leith and then form up in line ahead, they were then to sail down the Forth and salute his flag as they passed by.

Well all seemed to go OK at first then a fog bank descended over Queensferry and both the bridges. And guess what, it was just as the Lowestoft was approaching Lion, I believe that there was a reduction in the radar returns, we heard a crunch and the ship healed over, at the time we had a young AB (Nobby Clarke) serving six days cells, and guess where the cells were? Just aft of the bows, we managed to get up to the cells and let the poor chap out, the Captain decided that it would be unfair to put him back in so he commuted the remaining days of his punishment.

We were put into Rosyth and had a temporary plate put over the hole, sailed to Spit Head and picked up an anchor and sent to Malta and dry docked for repairs.

Looking through the hole in the bow of Lion can be seen the Forth Bridge

Another eye-witness account of Lowie's collision by Peter Ferris. HMS Lowestoft

The highlight (or should it be lowlight) of the commission was undoubtedly the collision with the Lion under the Forth Bridge. I was at my SSD in one of the radio rooms for departure when I heard the unforgettable words "Lion dead ahead, Lion dead ahead" being piped, probably by one of the forecastle crew whilst shitting himself! After the crash I was out of the radio room down to my mess to get my lifejacket mucho pronto! As far as I recall the main causes for the mishap were, 1 Lion was lying broadside under the bridge and, 2 it was an Officery thing to be first out.

Shame really as we missed out on trips to Gothenburg and Hamburg if I remember correctly. By the way it definitely was Lion as one of the tabloids of the time had a poem above the collision picture which started "The Lion and the Lowestoft collided in the fog" etc.