TWO MEN DROWNED.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1491, 13 July 1912, Page 6

TWO MEN DROWNED.

LAUNCH CAPSIZED ON WAIRAU

(Bt T«l«grapn.—Frera AtaoclMlon.l Blenheim, July 12. There was a ead drowning accident at Wairau Bay yesterday. William Aldridge, jun., and Edward Collett, both single men, -were crossing the bar inwards from Port Underwood in an oil launch. .

■ Later. Further details regarding the Wairau bar drowning 'fatality show that tho victims were cousins. They wero engaged in tho fishing- trade, and left in a motorlaunch for Port Underwood on Monday. Returning yesterday,. they attempted to negotiate the Wairau bar. Tho sea was not extraordinarily rough, but an unusually powerful roller struck the launch at a critical moment and capsized her. The horbourmaster and his assistant went across to the open beach, but saw no eigns. It was impossible to 1 traverse the bar in an open boat. Tho harbourmaster communicated with the steamer Wairau, and tho captain sent out a lifeboat, but the search was unsuccessful. C, The body'of Aldridge was picked up on tho beach near the bar at 5.50 p.m., and Colletfs body was found at the same place early this morning. The launch was smashed to pieces. - ' ;