SERIOUS TRAMWAY ACCIDENT.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 2, Issue 327, 25 April 1881, Page 2

SERIOUS TRAMWAY ACCIDENT.

Dunedin, Yesterday. An accident of a most alarming character, resulting in the injury of twelve persons, one of whom is almost certain to die, occurred at half-past n last night, on the Roslyn tramwa} r . Roslyn is a suburb situated on the hills above Dunedin, and the tramway started about four months ago. It is worked by an endless wire rope, to which the carriages are attached by grippers. The carriages are provided with a break supposed to be powerful enough to bring them to a standstill whenever applied. Last night the last car started up Rattray street for Roslyn, and proceeded some six hundred yards up the hill, the gradient being about i in 16, when something went wrong with the gear. The general statement is that the man in charge of the brake put it off instead of on, and before he could rectify the mistake the carriage commenced to run down hill, attaining such speed as it rushed down the incline that all efforts to stop it by means of the brake were futile. Three men, named Garrett, Spiers, and Stewart, jumped off, but the rest were unable to get out of the car, which reached the terminus of the line at a fearful rate of speed and tore through the heavy woodwork and three feet of metal road and turned over on its side. At one moment it appeared probable that it would dash across the footpath into the Crown Hotel. Plenty of assistance was at hand, and the car was righted and the injured men removed to the Shamrock Hotel. The following is the list of those injured :—Andrew Thomson (Thomson, Strang and Co., drapers), cut and bruised; John Strang, bruised and cut about the face; William Stewart, bruised about the legs; T. Harvey, laborer, cut and bruised ; Rossmond Johnson, slightly bruised; Wm. Pearce, bruised and cut about the head ; Leckie, badly bruised and for a long time insensible; Spears, postoffice clerk, bruised and cut, severely shaken ; T. Mackintosh, bruised and shaken ; Peter Hannah, very little hurt; John Conway, bruised; T. Garrett, skull dreadfully fractured (case considered hopeless); Hislop, cut and bruised. The three men who jumped off fared the worst. The car was greatly smashed about. The sufferers were at once attended by Drs. Brown, Ferguson, De Zouche, Burrows and Macdonald. All but Garrett are doing well.

Further Particulars. Preaching a Live Man’s Funeral Sermon. [by telegraph.] Dunedin, To-day. All the sufferers by the tram acci dent are progressing favorably. Garrett has partially recovered consciousness, and the doctors think there is a probability of his recovery. It was reported over the town last night that he had died, and in one church a funeral sermon was preached. Traffic was resumed to-day as usual.