THE WHARF FATALITY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1463, 11 June 1912, Page 3

THE WHARF FATALITY.

AN UNKNOWN .DANGER. The circumstances surrounding tiro doa'tii of. A.r.tiiur 'i3a.nki!, ft t'.nSjy clerfc, at. the .Giiuigqw Wharf on .Saturday morning,. wertt 'i'h.veg'tjgntoti .yeSici'dny by the. p.srcner, Jlr. W, 0• Jtidilpjl, Sergeant Darl-y appeared for t'ho police,. | -Mr. A, 1,. Jlerdman lor tlvp relntivrs of tlie aii<t .Jfp; C. H.. I?.ar.d fo.r- tho. UUrboiu'lJbard, liank.-' was ft senior tally clerk in ihc empio'y: df' t'lio Ilarbo.ur Board,, aiid. ho wfl's checking fioiii T .shed for t hp S.S., Araw.ii, ivlieii two bale.s of tow's, e.ac'h; wcigii'in'i;. Tcwt.,, foH'oa iii'ni from tli.c- top of a slack, Audrew W.i.lli'atu Wi'lsams s.tatcd iii pvjv rience that ho and dcceaii-d lvoro. oiigagcd' on Saturday moriii'ng' 'breaking ttowii' stack .of t<iiv aljou.i; l tl'ti Uigl.i ,ftr ?hipmen't by tho Arawa. Alter tlu-y had taken, down- nine qr ten dumps* 'without ii'nj: wnriiiag. tw-j dumps caine'.away from tlie outside 'of tii'ff stack. Olio knocked dis ceasr-<l dpwn, ..svnd. tb'a corner of 't-h'c .sccpml slriitk his chest, as he lay on the floor.: Deceased was used to the work. To Mr. It w.us not tlio- practice to place a man oh the stack to guard'; tho du.nips. 3Te iiad; never, previously .Seen. duin|.s fall as theso liad done, and ill ii:s opinibn t'tio stack, had been projieriy iind safely buji't.- _ Hi', ilenry gavo evideiice as to tlie ihjurib.s . su'frefcu. by tlio rieccasod. 'These comprised a, fr'asturerl .gkull, a' broken: leg,T.and thore were internal bur's also- : Wi/Jiajn a : ir-liarf jv ; ho : had- been .eji'gdged truqkin? the bales of tow to t.li.e steamer's side, described tho a'ccideni. He sa ? y the !>ak= of tew falling. and he caSled to deqea.sed to look out. He believed the slack. iyas safe, .but lie had had .ho experience ill .stacking, To: Mr. irerdinaa: The bales might liaTe been : ■loosened' by the- men 1 'faking others.. from". the.-Kp' of tfits stack; oi by {ho s ing of tlio Arawa at the. wharf. Augncst. MalniWrg, who ■ hail had. sixteen: years'- experience as sloreman for the Jfarbaur lioard, said that the. stack had beenvearpfully and safely built. The coroner said: that' it .appeared from, tho ..pvidetrce of' .witnesses tTia ; t eyeryone working in the siied at the time was of opiri'ioii: tli'at th.e' 'st'a'sik was quite What had happened had proved tlutt it was not safe.. Whether the tow bales that fell on; de'cpased; wire loosened or' .made mors. Ibp.s.e: -thatt the workers were aware bv tlie-'fiction' of bringing' other ■ bales down, or bv the bumping of. the vessel oil | he wharf, or by both combine;!, it was hard to say. Tile evidence as to the biiild"i" of the stack was that, it Fiis built .in the ordinary, way; and wa,s'Considered : saie, ''"t it was (dear from wha! had happened that there was: an plcrripnt. of danger there iinknojvni to the workers-. ■

Ilis Worship found that- death was the rpsuif: of accident.