The most commonly told story of the Ratman involves an old tramp who used the underpass to escape from the rain and the cold at nights. The story goes that he was old and barely able to walk. One night a group of teenagers beat him half to death and stole his blanket, the only real source of warmth he had. Dying from his injuries and the biting cold of the night, he succumbed to hypothermia - his stiffening corpse nibbled and gnawed on by the numerous vermin who inhabit the area. Soon after, locals reported odd noises. Namely, high-pitched squealing and the sound of nails dragging along the walls. Whether evidence of a real ghost or an overactive imagination, the fact remains that this story and subsequent noises led to locals dubbing the creature the Ratman of Southend.