FURTHER SUBSIDENCES NEAR STIFFORD, ESSEX 311
Recent subsidences
The last sentence in the above extract from Holmes' paper
is significant with its prophecy. It is always pleasing to record
the fulfillment of such a prophecy, and so nearly seventy years
later we did have an unusually heavy rainfall—probably one of
the heaviest in the Thurrock area for many years—on the evening
of Friday, 5th September 1958. Following the storm subsidences
were reported near the A. 13 arterial road—one was found on the
south side of the A. 13 road, half a mile west of the Cuckoo Lane
subsidence reported by Holmes. Other subsidences, believed two,
were reported in private farm property north of this point, but
they were not examined.
The subsidence noted in September 1958 was on the south side
of the A.13, on the eastern side of Peters and Barham's sand pit
and about 80 yards west of the Back Lane entrance (across the
road) and some eight yards from the road.
Figure 3. Stifford Subsidence Section (1958)
Plate 13, top and bottom, are photographs of the subsidence
and Fig, 3 is a cross-section to be compared with Fig, 1 (Holme's
subsidence).
The section of the subsidence was: —
Section Ref.
Soil, heavy deep brown clay ........................ 28" 1
Gravel—pebbly and irregular, 1/2" down in size,
in sand matrix with flint fragments
noted in places ................................. 13" 2