TRAMWAY MISHAPS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 83, 2 January 1919, Page 4

TRAMWAY MISHAPS

THREE WITHIN AN HOUR CAR DERAILED AT NEWTOWN Within the space of an hour early last eveping the tramway service was : badly disorganised owing' to .the .occur- ' rence of threo mishaps, which, fortunately, were unattended by serious results. The most troublesome dislocation took place in Newtown, close to the Public Library, about 6.15 p:m., when car 92, bound from Newtown Park to Thorndon, jumped tho rails and crashed at right angles across the footpath, smashing into the fence in front of the .library grounds. The car was in oharje cf Motorman' Henry William Hunt, and was'carrying a fair number of passengers. After leaving the stopping-place opposite the Newtown School the car proceeded at a moderate ' speed towards John Street, when suddenly it wandered from the track and tore across the roadway at practically a right angle, glancing a telegraph pole in its course. The impact with the pole was very sovero, and Ills passengers were badly shaken. Luckily none of the glass work was smashed, and no one was hurt, but a young woman named Emily Lewis, residing at 65 Waipapa Road, Hataitai, collapsed, and had to be carried into a neighbouring dwelling in order to receive attention. As she remained in a fainting condition for over* an hour and a hall it was deemed necessary to' remove her to the Public Hospital. On arrival at the institution it was found that she was suffering from nothing more, than shook, and it is probable that she. will be well enough to leave there this morh- • ing. Both the motorma.n Mid the conductor, George Wilfred To ve, were also shaken, but they remained on duty to assist in' the work of restoring the tram to the rails. The cause of the accident has not yet been' ascertained definitely, but it is sur- > raised that it was due to the lower .half of the front gear-box carrying away. The telegraph pole with , which the car collided was loosened and damaged .slightly, and one of the cross arms was broken, but none of the ( wires carried . away. Extensive damage was done to the pavement and fence. The footpath was grievously cut abontj and the asphalt being soft, the car, which, was of the single deck, double-end. type, soon settled down up to the axle-box of the front >bogey, the forepart being buried in the garden of the Library reserve. The wood blocking on the roadway was also deeply . carred. Immediately after the mishap, the car ■ sheds 'at Newtown were communicated \ with, nnd a repair gang was soon at work under the direction of Mr. D. M'Gillvray, traffic manager, in attempting to replace tho errant tram upon the rails. ■ This task was no easy one, but willing assistance .was lent by some of the great • crowd which assembled, including one or, two. returned• soldiers. By a strange coincidence it happened that another car had met with a mishap in Willis Street a.' short time before the accjdent.in Newtown occurred, nnd the-services of the break-down car with the necessary hauling apparatus were not at once available owing to that car having to make a journey from Newtown' to Willis Street with a pair of wheels for the other, tram which was in distress. To complicate matters further, an overhead wire in Kent Terrace snapped, and this, of course, meant a few minutes' additional delay . in the return of the break-down "car. Eventually, the car was dragged back on to the road bv means of chains and plates, and by 7.35 p.m. it had been jacked on to the rails. Before 8 o'clock tlie tramway service was able to resume its normal l'tinning. Car 92 was ta'ken to the repair shops at Newtown, where it was found that some of the undergear was broken. Owing to the collision with the telegraph pole the right side of the front portion of the car was damaged, and a good deal of the beading was ripped out of place. Considering the difficuit nature' of the work and the delays which were caused by the other, two mishaps in the city, the work of replacing the tram on the track was.executed in remarkably smart manner. , Bv the breaking of an overhead wire iu Kent Terrace about 6.10 p.m., the cars bound for Newtown, Lyall Bay, Constable Street, Seatoun, and Island .bay were held up, but this, delay was only of about ten minutes' duration. The traffic was temporarily obstructed about 6 o'clock by a Ha-taitai-bound car, the axle of the rear "pciny-whcels" of Hrhich broke clC'iii through while the oar <was travelling up Willis Street/ It being impossible to move the car for some time, the tramway authorities made the Jiest arrangements possible in the circumstances. Outward-bound, cars which usually went up Willis Street were sent out via, Jervois Quay, and tlio inner terminus of tlio Brojklyn and Aro Street services was for the time being fixed at Manners Street. • The department's mechanics were early on the scene, and after they had fitted the obstructing car with a new axlo the normal traffic was resumed.