A blue plaque has been unveiled in Coulsdon to commemorate a group of scouts who helped in the aftermath of a fatal train crash 108 years ago.
Seven people were killed and 65 were injured when a train derailed and split in two on the afternoon of January 29, 1910.
The express ploughed into the platform at Stoats Nest Station.
Among the heroes of the rescue were a group of scouts who had been playing football in a nearby field.
The boys – aged 11 to 14 – together with scoutmaster Frank Beckett and Adjutant Parker, helped in any way they could. They used the troop stretcher to carry the injured, applied first aid and carried messages as needed by the police and other rescuers.
Rod Bavin, group scout leader, said: “The scouts were instrumental in helping injured people and they dealt with some very terrible things that day.
"It’s part of our history and is commemorated still today, because we all wear a train badge on the back of our scarf – from Beavers, Cubs and Scouts.”
The plaque was unveiled on July 27 at nearby Leaden Hill, with help from Optivo, the Bourne Society, East Coulsdon Residents’ Association and The Oakwood Group.
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