RAILWAY ACCIDENT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XVIII, Issue 1490, 26 June 1905, Page 2

RAILWAY ACCIDENT.

.TWO MEN KILLED AND ONE! ( £ BADLY INJURED* r '

LINE .UNDERMINED- IMI FLOOR ' WATER; V \\ : r , 'j:

•ENGINE PLUNGES DOWN AND CAUSES FATALITIES. ■ fe | (Per Press Association.) r ' CHRISTCHURCH', last A serious accii'dont occurred. to mid-day. train- ‘lor Kaiapoi yester' day, whereby. • M-n R. J. Alexander;, school master, o£ Kaiapo i, and Mr

.John Rioli-ards, farmer,, of tlie samOiG p-iactylost tlieir. lives, and Mr Geongb V (Clothier, farmer, of Kaiapoi, had.it , both his legs broken. y *. .The accident occurred threes/-/. quarters of a mile from the Chaneys £i| station. -|i

Before the- Kaiapoi country. had -c, been Hooded in the locality itihe train: bad previously gone over a place 'Y. Where there was little water on the ’ rails, and the driver was -advancing i -• very carefully. The track ahead, appeared safe, buti .E|' suddenly the engine plunged into yf, the water, and sank half-Way up to N. the boiler, the flioojd waters having || loosened the soft, sa-iidy soil. i The brake anfcl feeder, vane next the 1 engine turned on- -their ends, and the NJ first passenger carriage ran them. .

Messrs Alexander and Richard's | ■were standing on the rear, platform' 1 J of this carriage,' anjd Mr Clothier, | Was on the front of the next ear- . ~f riage,. . . 1 : !

The. first two mentioned 1 , were jambed between the two carriages, and -

killed,. ■Mr Clothier was caught' in the ,G wreck', an’d had both *-of- his legs A smashed. --

No one else was injured,, alllfodsh’ the passengers received • severe s£» shook when the engine plunged into, 'id.' the water, and a second shock: when

the carriages struck the which v was sufficient to throw people offl their anfd Cause great coasternation., - : , Two doctors were sent from' Kaiapoi, and a similar numbeE front here " iStf' ',4| The Minister ,of Railways heard of the accident at RakaLu anEii was greatly concerned when” 'he learned of the casualties.;

FURTHER DETAILS. y*. ‘ HOW THE FATALITIES OOOURRED. i * f'(Per Press Association.)' Christchurch, last night. The scene of yesterday’s railway accident is a short distance beyond Chaneys, ,:A" a flag station ten miles from Christchurch,' - one mile from Belfast, and four miles from Kaiapoi. The overflow .waters from the Waimakariri yesterday spread over practically all,*, the level country between the river and r

the Belfast railway, the line acting as a kind of dam. The soil is light and sandy, and the flood water gradually worked its way through the railway embankment,-/ undermining its foundations, and consequently withdrawing the necessary support from the permanent way. The engine-driver approached the fatais> spot apparently without misgivings. The weight of the engine proved too much for the weakened track,, and the engine suddenly dipped into a depression caused by its own weight and forced its way almoßt to the other side of it. But the rails gave' way, and the engine was thrown on its side on the left of the permanent way. The driver and fireman jumped from the eDgine into the water, and landed/ withont injury, and the guard escaped, with a slight cut on the face. On the rear platform of the first carriage were standing Messrs Alexander and; Richards, though some accounts state that they had just rushed out of the carriag cn to the platform when the aeciden occurred. The sudden stoppage forced the firs, carriage into the second one, and Meson - Alexauder’r and Richards' heads were' caught botween the ends of the roof 3of the second and first: carriages, and were almost severed from the trunks. Death was instantaneous.

Mr Clothier was standing on the front platform of the second carriage, and when the impact occurred his. legs were caught in the wreckage of the carriages, and both of tho limbs wero broken.

The bodies were taken on hy train to Kaiapoi, and Mr Clothier was removed to ho Hospital by tho train which also conveyed the remainder of the passengers to Christchurch.

The failing of the engine into the depression caused a breach in the railway embankment, through which the flood waters ponred with the force of a mill race, and the engine was quickly submerged. Medical men informed the Railway authorities that they had searched for other iojured passengers, but could find none.

This morning large gangs were oonveyed from the city, end were soon at work repairing the damage. After the accident occurred there were three washouts between Belfast and the scene of the accident.

To day tho floods subsided considerably, and the engine was half out of the water. The clots of blood and brain matter on the end of the roof of the seoond carriage, and on the floors of the platform of the first were a gruesome sight. The hat of one of the victims was found by the side of the line, also spattered with brain matter.

The repairing of the washouts between Belfast and Chaneys will probably be finished in-day.

A temporary deviation of the line is to be put in at the scene of the accident.

The inquest on those killed opens to- 1 morrow at Kaiapoi. Mr B. J. Alexander was a native of ' Saxmunham, Suffolk, England. He was i 61 yeßrs of age and married. He had beerrj headmaster at Kaiapoi since 1880. Mr Richards was a well-known farmer, ‘ and also married.