Emmerdale - Disasters

Disasters

Emmerdale has featured a number of incidents and disasters over the years. Some are listed below:

• 1973 - Sharon Crossthwaite was raped and strangled by Jim Latimer. Jack Sugden discovered the truth after arriving home to find Jim trying to strangle Penny Golightly, after which Jim reluctantly confessed to killing Sharon.
• 1973 - Jack Sugden's lodger Ian 'Trash' McIntyre died trying to escape first floor window at The Old Mill were Jack had locked him in for his own safety and falling to the ground, breaking his neck.
• 1976 - Matt Skilbeck's twin children, Sam and Sally, and his aunt Beattie Dowton were killed in an accident at a level crossing when their car was hit by a train.
• 1976 - Heather Bannerman crashed into the front gate at Emmerdale Farm while driving along after borrowing her husband's car.
• 1977 - A great storm broke out over Beckindale. Young couple Ray & Sarah Oswell sought refuge at Emmerdale Farm after their own cottage was destroyed by a tree struck by lightning.
• 1977 - A fire broke out at Emmerdale Farm and the Beckindale Volunteer Fire Service arrived to fight the blaze. During the fire fighting, one of the members of the team suffered severe burns.
• 1977 - A fire broke out in the village and the blame was allocated to tourists that had been staying in the barn that set alight.
• 1978 - An explosion at a mine trapped vicar's son Clive Hinton and his two friends Ian and Rod. Clive and Rod were found unconscious and Ian escaped with cuts and bruises.
• 1978 - Teenagers Steve Hawker and Pip Coulter committed an armed robbery at The Woolpack and left Amos Brearly and Henry Wilks locked in the cellar. The two teenagers then headed for Emmerdale Farm where they held Sam Pearson at gunpoint. To save her father, Annie Sugden provided the two with a getaway car.
• 1981 - Religious farmer Enoch Tolly was killed in a tractor accident.
• 1982 - In a fit of rage after being sacked from NY Estates by Alan Turner, Jackie Merrick went off the rails and set fire to one of NY's caravans.
• 1985 - Jackie Merrick was knocked off his motorbike by Alan Turner's land rover and spent five months in hospital with broken bones.
• 1986 – Pat Sugden died when she crashed her car down a hillside after swerving to avoid a flock of sheep.
• 1987 - Jackie Merrick accidentally fell down a disused mineshaft whilst trying to rescue a stray sheep.
• 1988 – Phil Pearce carelessly left discarded rags at Crossgill Farm, which caught fire, trapping Annie Sugden inside.
• 1989 - Crooked quarryman Dennis Rigg was crushed to death by Joe Sugden's prize bull whilst threatening the Sugdens with eviction.
• 1989 - Jackie Merrick accidentally shot himself whilst out hunting a fox for a £10 bet.
• 1990 - Frank and Kim Tate arrived home to find the Home Farm barn conversion had been set alight. Michael Feldmann was initially suspected, but the culprit later turned out to be farm labourer Jock McDonald.
• 1990 - Kate Sugden accidentally knocked down and killed Pete Whiteley whilst driving home from Hotten.
• 1990 - A chemical tanker crashed into the village trapping Amos Brearly in the Woolpack cellar.
• 1993/1994 – A Plane crashed in Beckindale, leaving most of the village in ruins and killing Archie Brooks, Elizabeth Pollard, Mark Hughes and Leonard Kempinski.
• 1994 – Shirley Turner was shot dead during the Home Farm raid by Reg Dawson, the ex-husband of Viv Windsor.
• 1995 – Luke McAllister died after his van crashed into a wall and exploded in flames.
• 1996 – Dave Glover died in a fire at Home Farm after attending the wedding of Biff Fowler to his sister Linda Glover.
• 1997 – At the engagement party of Steve Marchant and Kim Tate, Lord Alex Oakwell took Linda Fowler for a late-night drive and crashed through a fence on to a tree while trying to snort cocaine. He removed Linda from the passenger seat as she was starting to wake up and moved her to the drivers seat and fled the scene of the accident, leaving Linda to die.
• 1999 – Graham Clark killed Rachel Hughes by pushing her off a cliff.
• 2000 – A van and minibus collide in the village. Van driver Pete Collins dies at the scene; minibus passenger Butch Dingle dies in hospital from his injuries the next day.
• 2000 – Long-serving character Sarah Sugden died in a barn fire that was started deliberately by her adopted son Andy. Sarah's lover Richie Carter was also trapped in the barn but was rescued by Sarah's husband Jack.
• 2001 – Jean Strickland, the local school headmistress was struck and killed by a stolen car driven by student Marc Reynolds on his way home from a night out with friends.
• 2003/2004 – A large storm hit Emmerdale, leaving parts of the village in ruins with collapsed power lines and trees. The Woolpack was damaged when the chimney was struck by lightning which collapsed through the roof into the bar area and also on the front, crushing Tricia Dingle which resulted in her dying in hospital a week later; Ashley Thomas and Louise Appleton became stuck on the road as a result of the terrible weather. The disaster took place on the 10th anniversary of the plane crash.
• 2005 – Max King died when the Land Rover he was in went off the road and through a brick wall and exploded, although the driver Andy Sugden escaped the car unharmed and gave a false story about the accident to avoid being prosecuted; and the police believed his version of events, as there were no witnesses to contradict his story.
• 2006 – Kings River showhome collapsed after several explosions caused by a gas leak. The accident claimed three lives: Noreen Bell and estate agent David Brown were killed in the explosion and Dawn Woods later died in hospital from internal injuries.
• 2006 – Tom King was murdered on Christmas Day when his son Carl hit him over the head with a horse statue and pushed him out of a window.
• 2007 – DCI Grace Barraclough was killed instantly when she was run over by a lorry while on the way to the police station to report Carl for killing his father, Tom King.
• 2007 – Victoria Sugden threatened her father, Jack, and adoptive brother, Andy, that if they didn't admit who killed her mum, she would burn the family home down, with them all trapped inside. Andy admitted he was responsible but the fuel ignited accidentally when the boiler started up and set the house on fire. The house was gutted but the family survived.
• 2008 – Matthew King was killed after crashing a van into a wall while trying to run over his brother, Carl. The brothers had been fighting as Carl had ruined Matthew's wedding to Anna De Souza earlier that day.
• 2010 – Aaron Livesy and Jackson Walsh go on a night out together along with Paddy Kirk and Marlon Dingle. After arguing with Aaron, Jackson's van stalled on a railway line and was hit by a goods train, leaving him paralysed from the neck down.
• 2011 – A fire started by corrupt policeman Nick Henshall tore through the village, killing Terry Woods and Viv Hope.
• 2012 - John and Moira Barton go to a hotel for some private time, booked by their son, as they had decided not to divorce after all. Whilst driving, John hits a patch of black ice and the Land Rover crashes into a ravine. Moira is rescued by Declan Macey and Katie Sugden but the vehicle falls off a ledge into the ravine with John trapped inside. He later died in hospital.
• 2012- Adam Barton sets fire to Cain Dingle's garage, while Cain is still there. He later rescues him, and the fire brigade are called. Later on Aaron Livesy takes the blame for the fire.