Accident at the Staiths
 

There's quite a common photograph of this accident at the harbour but this is the report of it in the Morpeth Herald of 17 December 1920:

"While the Broomhill engine was shunting waggons laden with coal along the staithes at Amble Harbour on Tuesday morning, two ten-ton trucks broke away from their couplings and toppled over the end of the loading spout into the steamer Urpeth, which was being loaded. The trimmers in the ship's hold managed to scramble into safety and a man named J. Coulter had a very narrow escape. When the trucks were on the point of coming over he happened to see them and was just able to jump clear. One waggon was smashed to smithereens, but the other was in such a condition that it can be repaired. Happly, no one was hurt, which was wonderful, as it might easily have been that some of the trimmers might, having been busy around the hatches. In the afternoon the vessel was removed down the main quay when the debris was cleared off the ship by means of a crane."

Not sure if these are the pictures?:

accident at the staith at Warkworth Harbour, Amble, Northumberland, with a 12-ton empty coal wagon suspended over a collier which was sitting on the river bottom, unable to move to safety. Fortunately the couplings held, and disaster was averted by a nearby crane.


accident at the staith, showing an empty coal wagon overshooting the coal staith at Warkworth Harbour, Amble, Northumberland. There was sufficient water under the keel of the waiting vessel to enable the pilot boat to push the collier to safety.

scrub that.
 

No that's not them. The wagon has NCB on the side so a different incident, and much more recent, post 1947.

I think the 1920s photo has two wagons connected together and dangling down vertically? (edit: but the report says one was smashed to smithereens so perhaps not)

The first photo looks as if it was at number 2 staith as there was a crane,in the picture, between 1 and 2 staithes.
The second seems to be either 4 or 5 staithe, where the "Old Boathouse" is now as you can see upriver.