24th December 1927
A motorist is killed on a Jersey level crossing
The bell was sounding, warning oncoming traffic that the barrier was being lowered at the Grève d’Azette station level crossing, but Francis Lecocq thought he could probably squeeze through in time. He was wrong. The barrier came down on the roof of his car and held it firmly in place.
The train was already too close for the driver to stop, and although Lecocq and both of his daughters managed to get out of the car before the inevitable collision, The Times of 28 December 1927 reports that, on that fateful Christmas Eve, “the train crashed into the car, cutting it completely in half, and carrying it some 50 yards up the line”.
It also killed Lecocq.
FREE Jersey history newsletter
Don't miss our weekly update on Jersey's fascinating history. We promise never to sell your data to anyone else, and there's a super-easy unsubscribe link on the bottom of each email so you can leave whenever you want.
Other events that occured in December
Jersey-born Commissioner of Singapore dies
- Jersey-born Arthur de la Mare was Commissioner of Singapore at the point the country gained its independence from Britain.
- Read more…
An earthquake shakes the Channel Islands
- Jersey and its neighbouring Channel Islands were struck by an earthquake in December 1843, followed by several aftershocks.
- Read more…
Operation Hardtack targets the Channel Islands
- Needing to find out what was happening in the .Channel Islands during the Occupation, the British government launched Operation Hardtack.
- Read more…
Jersey elects first woman to States Assembly
- In 1948, Ivy Foster became the first woman elected to serve in Jersey's States Assembly, although she was not the first to try.
- Read more…
