THE EXPLOSION AT OHAKUNE

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2773, 17 May 1916, Page 6

THE EXPLOSION AT OHAKUNE

STATEMENT BY HON W. FJKASER . USUAL PRACTICE FOLLOWED A statement in regard to thi, Ohakune fatality was made in the House of Representatives yesterday by the Minister of Public Works (the Hon. W. Eraser). Mr. Eraser explained that the practice observed in the quarry was to drive tunnels into tho wall, put in explosives close tho tunnels up, and then to lire the charges by electricity. The information that he had so far received was somewhat fragmentary, but it seemed that three tunnels hocl been bored in the face of the rock. No. 1 had been excavated, but not charged, No. 2 had been excavated, charged, and iilled ready for firing, and i\'o. y had been charged and seaieci, and cement was being put in to close it up in the same way that No. 2 had been closed, when by some extraordinary means the whole thing exploded, and blew tho men who were in the tunnel right out, <(S if they were discharged from a. cannon. It was impossible, lie said, just now to state' the cause of the explosion Six men had been killed, and lie had been informed tliait two others were, in. iured. He could not conceive that the two latter men were inside the tunnel when the explosion occurred. ' The bodies of all those who were killed had been recovered, with the exception of that of Torrens. A search was being made for his body, and it was considered possible that it might be found in tho debris in the tunnel. As showing the force of the explosiou, he mentioned that one of the bodies had been found three hundred feet from the mouth of the tunnel.

The Minister added that his informa. tiou at present was somewhat meagre, This was due to the fact, that a Mr. Baker, District Engineer, who resided at Taiimaranni, was absent on leave, and that Mr. Mellsopp, Mr. Baker's assistant, .was one of the men killed. He unfortur nately had not heard of the accident in time on Monday evening to aend anyone to the spot that night, but he had dispatched Mr. W. S. Short, Under-Secretary to Public Works, and ilr. 31urray, Engineer, to tho scene of the accident yesterday. At his tcquost also, Professor M'Laurin, expert in explosives, had also gone ito the spot to assist ia investigations. The latter said that at present ho could not form any opinion as to the cause of tho explosion, unless it wero duo to spontaneous combustion. The practice adopted in oonncdtiou with tunnels, appeared to have been precisely the same as that adopted in every other instance. Tho question had been raised a 9 to whether it would be advisable to tire tho other tunnel that had been charged, and ho thought it would bo wise to have the opinion of Professor M'Laurin on this point. The late Mr. Mellsojjp, wbo wasiono <?f the victims' of the fatalitv, was tho son of tho late Mr. James Mellsopp, who for many years was headmaster of the public 6choo] 'at Mangcre, Auckland. ONE MAN STILL MISSING. '. DRIVE FULL OF GAS FUMES. By Telegraph— (Special Correspondent.) Ohakune, May 16. Ono man is still missing. Mr. 'Woods, manager of tho Extended Mine, Huntly, and Mr. Penman, manager of Ralfs Taupiri Colliery, Huntley, nnd Mr. Broodbent, deputy, arrived here this morning, and examined the drive, and found it very full of gas fumes. One of the search party was overcome, and had to be carried out. Five bodies have been found, and the search party is still looking for the missing man. The following are the names of the men whoso bodies havo been recovered:—Jlellsopp, Davies, Larking, M'Cord, STGarry. Torrens is still missing.