FATAL ACCIDDET AT PURAKANUI CLIFFS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1914, 9 August 1888, Page 3

FATAL ACCIDDET AT PURAKANUI CLIFFS.

(Pj!R PBESS ASSOCIAIION )

Dunedin, Angnsl 8,

Gideon WilHamaon, the rmn injured at the Purakanni OYSs on Monday night by a falling otone, died at the HospUal to-day, having never recovered couscibusaeßs. He leaves a wife and large family.

The " Dally Times " kl™s the following acconnt of the accident by whioh Williamsun lost his lift: .'—l*; was between the time when the 410 p.m. train from Dunedin p»Bßed ano 7 pm. he rock »lip recurred at tne Puralmam 01 ffj. Traffic w■* atoncftstopped,aod man senttc clear away the debris. While they were wotkiag at thia Blip they heard another slip coming down farther up (ho line, and one of the men went to Ree what had taken place. After proceeding a H*tle way he met a surfaceman (Gideon WitlamsoD) walking t >wards him, lamp m hand. He aootsted him but received no reply, and then on looking it him more closely he bsw blood runnirg down his faoe. He then took hold of Williamson, and calling for help some of his m*tes came up, and between them they carried the injured man to tl^e house of the watchman. It w&b there ascertained that he had been 1 track od the head by a falling Btene, whioh had caused a terrible woupd ex ending from the forehead to the baok cf the iuad, and completely opening up the ekull. Tne accident happened about 8.30 p.m., and rende:ed the man quite senseless, liven while walking a'ong the line with the lamp m his baud he was quite unoonsclom, gnd it was with the greatest difficulty that the men afterwards removed the lamp from his graßp. Aa mentioned m our report yesterday no time was loHt m conveying the sufferer to tbe Dunedin Hospital by special train, Williamson, who is a powerful man m the prime of lite, is highly spoken of m the district. He has a lrage family, mo3t of whom are grown up. He was visited by several doctors m the hospital yesterday, and from what we can learn there is little chance of hlsreooveiy.

Men were kept working at the slip till midnight, and it seema extraordinary that farther accidents did not take pUce, bb stones were coming down m different places, and from a groat height, nearly all the time The men, it a understood, are getting rather chary of this n!ght work at the cliffs, aod it really seema bb if voy little ia to be gained by it, while the danger to life and limb is by no means Bmall.