The Final Fire

The end of the Tower was to occur on Saturday 5 April, 1969, the call was raised by a police constable on patrol in Victoria Road.

When the fire brigade arrived in the early hours of the morning they were met with large bellows of smoke pouring out of the windows, and the sound of walls collapsing.

The Tower Boating Lake had been drained previously and could not be used.

With extended pipes, water was taken from the Marine Lake, a fair distance away.

Soon after 7.00 am, with relief crews called in from the surrounding and over 150 firemen at the scene with 20 pumps and four Turntable Ladders. But all was in vain the building could not be saved.

 

The Managers Office

The photographs below are from a magnificent picture that was rescued from the General Managers office shortly after the fire destroyed the Tower.

The original picture some 6 ft x 5ft is on loan to The New Brighton Heritage and Information Centre.

With some artistic licence and not to scale, But to my mind it is still a very important historical picture, dating from the time of the original idea of the grounds layout.