Saint Ambrose Close, Coombeswood, Hawne, Dudley, West Midlands With thanks to Leo Conway for discovering these Survivors. As a continuation of the Survivor seen on Coombs Road, two Stewarts & Lloyds 25 ft (8 m) tubular steel columns are still present on this road (although one has been cut down to a stump), with the GEC Z8420 being the lantern of choice once again. This road was another means of accessing the vast Coombs Road Tube Works, although probably not usually used for lorries, owing to the steep incline at the road's junction with Gorsty Hill Road. Further columns of the same type continue beyond Saint Ambrose Close into (what is now) the Coombswood Way industrial estate, although their Z8420s were replaced many years earlier.
The old columns must have been left behind when housing was constructed - there are dedicated 5 m columns installed on this part of the road, but not by the houses as I suspect that the road is private and not adopted by the Local Authority. The housing developer could have saved themselves the trouble (and expense) of adding new columns by utilising the existing (albeit, very old) equipment!
Once again, a cranked bracket with a short outreach is employed.
The flat glass cover remains intact, if a little grubby. A nut and bolt holds the frame for the glass in place - access to the lantern's interior being gained by releasing a clip beneath the rear casting, allowing the canopy to hinge forward.
The lamp remains connected in its porcelain lampholder - awaiting that fateful day when it might be energised once again!
I assume that someone forgot to apply their vehicle's handbrake correctly, resulting in it rolling down the hill and into the second column, which in turn, developed a noticeable lean, and had to be cut down for safety. Even in 2022, both columns were still at full height.
I attempted to open the door to see what, if anything, remained inside the curtailed column, but the old internal locking bar was jammed. I was, however, able to peer in through a small gap at the top of the door, and spy a heavily-corroded aluminium-cased capacitor attached to the backboard. The ballast looked to be missing.
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