The luckiest men in Britain: The crane drivers who SHOULD have been in their cab at the top of London skyscraper when helicopter crashed into it in fog, but both overslept...- Richard Moule and Nicki Biagioni were both late for work - and missed death by minutes
- The crash which happened in fog at 8am yesterday, claimed two lives
- Police and Mayor of London Boris Johnson say fatal accident could have been 'much worse'
; I$ v& y5 j9 F* Z7 j4 bTwo workmen last night thanked ‘divine intervention’ for their astonishing escape from death as a helicopter crashed into their crane and turned into a fireball.
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The pair should have been in the cabin when disaster struck, sending burning debris cascading 700ft on to the rush-hour streets of London below. os.tvboxnow.com) @; u8 [% I, N/ q" l) G
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Instead, Richard Moule and his colleague Nicki Biagioni were late for work – both had overslept for the first time in years – and missed death by minutes.
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The crash, which happened at 8am yesterday in fog, claimed two lives, including that of the helicopter pilot, and left 12 injured. But police said it was ‘a miracle’ that the toll was not higher after the helicopter sliced through the crane ‘as if it was a piece of paper’, scattering wreckage over the streets of Vauxhall, South London.
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Richard Moule (left) with his wife Stephanie, and Nicki Biagioni (right), pictured with wife Leanna, should have been in the crane cab in Vauxhall when the helicopter hit os.tvboxnow.com- D4 Y$ i, t2 W H! `
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What remains: A view today of the broken crane after the helicopter accident in Vauxhall, central London, that saw two people die and a dozen more injured yesterday
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, S7 U: [( F n# B0 ?5 O( W% Ntvb now,tvbnow,bttvb Father-of-two Mr Moule, 31, told the Daily Mail: ‘My colleague and I were both supposed to be there at 7am but we were both late. TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。( J l5 k+ R* ~4 C* g
‘It was the first time I’ve been late since starting this job three years ago. I just woke up late. Call it divine intervention if you like.
/ y/ k' {- l4 E9 x5 X ‘I went in on my motorcycle and got there about 7.45am. I was in the basement ready to go up when it happened.
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‘I didn’t hear an explosion. The first I knew was when an alarm went off and people were being evacuated.
3 Y8 D+ F, p5 w ‘The first thing I did was call my wife Stephanie and tell her, “You’ll be hearing about this but I’m OK”. She gave me a big hug when I got back home.’
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Mr Biagioni’s wife Leanna said that her husband, a father of three, had also overslept. TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。8 [; Q& Z/ e3 p/ V% }0 r
She said: ‘He overslept this morning, something he never does and was late for work. He was not up the crane when it hit.
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- h5 s+ ` [ ~6 ]" Y% c' mos.tvboxnow.comChaotic commute: Thick smoke rises from the burning debris which fell in the middle of a road. Emergency services personnel can be seen flocking to the crash site公仔箱論壇- B' ]) @' X! [# x3 a0 V! b
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) I7 ]' a( |6 y( oos.tvboxnow.comStreet of flames: An inferno rages near the crash site and encroaches on a car, after a river of aviation fuel from the downed helicopter caught lightTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。7 C+ P: h$ ], Q
TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。$ \$ r' r3 T4 j+ j- w" ?
 
( b/ S U q( s _/ FTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。Mangled wreckage: The crane next to Britain's tallest residential skyscraper, the Tower at One St George Wharf, was struck as the pilot 'struggled to see through the fog'7 u r3 c1 k6 Y, C1 e3 [
$ m0 @8 r6 ~+ Ytvb now,tvbnow,bttvb ‘I thank his guardian angel.’ Mr Biagioni, 30, who is the principal crane operator, was over an hour latefor work. Friends said he was normally woken by his three children – sons Rocco, six, four-year-old Dino, and Luca, two – but yesterday they had slept in. TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。( o. _; e% S3 L. C" j- N& s
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He was just arriving at the site on his motorbike and driving down a ramp to park in front of the crane as the helicopter hit.
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3 x' E! I' E$ P: B3 v0 Ttvb now,tvbnow,bttvb Mr Biagioni was only late for his shift because his children were not as noisy as usual in the morning. He said: ‘I was very lucky - it's unbelievable. I am still in shock. If it was not for my boys not waking me up, that would have been it. - X- H" m' r$ h3 M8 q! d
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'I was very lucky - it's unbelievable. I am still in shock. If it was not for my boys not waking me up, that would have been it' tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb7 x& U( c: C' [' z4 _: e
Nicki Biagioni, crane worker
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‘Normally I would have been up there in the crane but I was running late. Normally I would be have been up there, but instead I just pulled into the site as it all happened. 公仔箱論壇7 x9 i$ W, ?# y+ J
# j% F9 D; f3 B# H( S* Ttvb now,tvbnow,bttvb He told BBC Essex: ‘Helicopters fly past lower than the crane all the time. You rely on the fact that it is a very safe route for the helicopters and they are meant to stick over the river. The thought of it had been at the back of my mind but it has never been something that I thought would happen.’ os.tvboxnow.com0 O4 b# B# D8 ?6 H8 ~! j
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Witnessesdescribed hearing a loud bang and seeing a flash of light as the helicopter collided with the high-rise crane on top of Britain’s tallestresidential skyscraper, the St George Tower. os.tvboxnow.com6 i: n9 n1 Z. ]# O R7 T/ k7 ]
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PeteBarnes, who has piloted helicopters for movies such as the James Bond film Die Another Day, was alone in the aircraft amid thick cloud when itclipped the structure.
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& o/ _8 {- Q1 ?3 Z# m公仔箱論壇 Mr Barnes's brother said it would have been the pilot's 'instinct' to take any steps necessary to minimalise casualties.
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'It's a matter of instinct, it's whatpilots do,' said Chris Barnes, 55. 'Our condolences go out to the family of the other man who was killed, that's the last thing that my brother would have wanted to happen.'
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Paying tribute to his brother, he added: 'He was outgoing, very personable. A good-looking guy with an irrepressible smile. When he walked into a room you knew he was there, he lit up a room. He was a good guy.' : s( @$ k O5 D
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Repair: Workmen scaled the crane today in an attempt to secure the site and allow local residents to return home
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The aftermath: A crumpled piece of metal lays on the floor. Witnesses described hearing a loud bang and seeing a flash of light as the helicopter collided with the high-rise crane 0 i+ d" H; M6 o
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s4 T0 N) t( c& S公仔箱論壇The destruction happened near one of London's busiest transport hubs. Several key roads were closed off, causing commuter chaos, as the emergency services battled firesos.tvboxnow.com4 Q4 ?2 p! \7 ?* c6 _+ J
. _! p; g: u1 s, k: |公仔箱論壇 The pilot lived with his partner Rebecca Dixon and their two children, eight-year-old Freddie and Alexandra, 12.
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She told the Evening Standard: 'Obviously he would have been frantic and the lives of others would have been at the forefront of his mind.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。4 U+ Q" _0 g& k% g
'It sums up the man. I find it very comforting and so do the children.'5 [) ?' Q+ [$ z L; c8 ?% J1 g7 ]
4 x, m& d. Z6 G8 u Xtvb now,tvbnow,bttvb The AgustaWestland 109 Power hurtled to the ground and exploded into flames yards from Vauxhall Station, claiming the lives of Mr Barnes and another person on the ground, who was named last night as 39-year-old Matthew Wood from Sutton, South London.
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2 W- T- P; h' H, _$ n& f" @0 s London Mayor Boris Johnson said there could easily have been many more fatalities, given the close proximity of the crash scene to one of the capital’s busiest transport hubs, Vauxhall Station, a major supermarket and the headquarters of MI6.
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‘It could have been much worse,’ he said. % `3 Q4 g) S" x# p7 }
Commander Neil Basu, of the Metropolitan Police, said: ‘It was something of a miracle that this was not many, many times worse.’
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& V0 w; V6 ]! z7 o: H公仔箱論壇Tidying up: A specialist police team works today in the aftermath of the helicopter crash in central London
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3 W% Z) g. ~ K+ T9 Dtvb now,tvbnow,bttvbDramatic video footage and photos of the crash, described by terrified witnesses as being like a 'disaster movie', were uploaded onto the internet, showing images of blazes and chaostvb now,tvbnow,bttvb8 m7 Z {& X& l' R" t
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The streets were flooded with emergency services trying to help the injured and put out the flames, as police officers were in disbelief that more people had not been hurt in the collisionTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。& K% [1 N- S7 {3 [/ g* j, y
& v" L X8 ]# _* \! jtvb now,tvbnow,bttvb Dramatic video footage and photos of the crash, described by terrified witnesses as being like a ‘mini 9/11’ and a ‘disaster movie’, were uploaded onto the internet within minutes, revealing chaotic scenes, burning wreckage and buildings and cars damaged by flames. 公仔箱論壇, Z) \$ L" G+ P/ r' [5 |
2 O& f' t5 W" X" |5 l1 e6 M% V Several key roads were closed off, causing commuter chaos, as the emergency services battled fires. Initial fears of a possible terrorist attack were quickly discounted. 公仔箱論壇8 ~# @+ C" G2 ]# F9 P
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Yesterday accident investigators were probing claims by witnesses that a light on top of the crane may not have working or clearly visible. It also emerged that pilots had been warned of the existence of the crane by the aviation authorities. tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb5 Q9 _8 A; i! e7 L2 ~ P! C6 I
: ~, W0 I; D- p8 ^$ e公仔箱論壇 Last night at his home in Harlow, Essex, Mr Moule’s two young children were repeatedly telling him: ‘I love you, I love you.’ os.tvboxnow.com& q& b$ o# k* n
Mr Moule said that he had no idea what he was supposed to do about reporting for work today. 7 Y7 H+ T. F" X) K/ c! T
' w3 Z# \( s$ m* e, I ‘I’m just waiting for them to ring me and let me know,’ he said. ‘They’re more concerned about what happened.’
. L8 X1 G7 ?1 U8 u9 D1 n; W) P His sister Charlotte, 22, wrote on Twitter: ‘Maybe there is a God up there! That was my brother’s crane and he was late for work today!’ 公仔箱論壇) L( _- t' B( e5 e+ |
* t4 g$ {6 _ _% q5 h9 vtvb now,tvbnow,bttvb A friend of Mr Biagioni, who lives in Loughton, Essex, said that he was ‘devastated’ for the families of those who died.
* f& p3 m+ |3 ~! Etvb now,tvbnow,bttvb He said: ‘He’s got three little kids. I spoke to him earlier on, he’s devastated about what was happened, but is obviously so relieved that he survived.
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‘It’s a miracle that he not only lived, but was not hurt.’ $ \/ I" P( n% w+ { M
Mr Biagioni has been told not to go in to work today. He may now lose his job on the site because the crane is inoperable. tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb- ^! d, I; x; F- I w6 |3 w
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Yesterday accident investigators were probing claims by witnesses that a light on top of the crane may not have working or clearly visible when the helicopter crashed
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% N& a5 _6 W: D' E9 R- M+ sTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。
3 z8 u1 v' T* t& {/ S( U9 S1 G: ]TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。The helicopter crashed into a crane at the top of St George Wharf Tower yesterday morning and plunged into rush hour traffic below. Two people lost their lives in the incident9 A5 m+ w# }" R" g* P* i4 v( N
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$ ]# {2 `$ D' I: V5 Y+ r4 L1 t6 Z公仔箱論壇Emergency services arrive as smoke pours from the burning debris of a helicopter which crashed in the Vauxhall area after the aircraft hit a crane attached to the nearby St Georges Wharf Tower
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Fuel: The helicopter fuel caught light and threatened houses on the street as blazes ripped through the area during rush hour |
發表於 2013-1-18 03:36 AM
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