The Tay Bridge Disaster The Tay Bridge Disaster "The Tay Bridge Disaster" is a poem written in 1880 by the Scottish poet William McGonagall, who has been widely recognised as the worst poet in history. The poem recounts the events of the evening of December 28, 1879, when, during a severe gale, the Tay Rail Bridge at Dundee collapsed as a train was passing over it with the loss of all on board (now thought to be 75 people and not 90 as stated in the poem). The foundations of the bridge were not removed and are alongside the newer bridge. The poem is
River Tay froze over as far as the Tay Road Bridge, and ice floes remained for weeks despite a thaw. Several places along the Tay take their names from it, or are believed to have done so: The river is of high biodiversity value and is both a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation. The SAC designation notes the river's importance for salmon ("Salmo salar"), otters ("Lutra lutra"), brook lampreys ("Lampetra planeri"), river lampreys ("Lampetra fluviatilis"), and sea lampreys ("Petromyzon marinus") . Tha Tay also maintains flagship population of Freshwater pearl mussel ("Margaritifea margaritifera"). Freshwater pearl