FRIGHTFUL BOILER EXPLOSION AT AUCKLAND.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 8, Issue 391, 5 July 1866, Page 3

FRIGHTFUL BOILER EXPLOSION AT AUCKLAND.

(Prom the New Zealand Herald, XSth Jane.) An accident, the most sudden and appalling of anv that as occurred within the history of the Colony, took place at half-past two o’clock on Saturday afternoon, resulting, we regret to state, in the sacrifice of one life and injury more or less dangerous and severe to six other persons. The narrative of this disaster assumes all the proportions of those horrible catastrophes which are read of from time to time as happening iu English towns and districts. There, however, the solid nature of the surrounding buildings confines the area of destruction but iu the present case, the injury and damage have been wide spread, owing to the fragile nature of the surrounding structures.

Messrs, Hawkeswood and Son are engineers, moulders, filters, &s., in Chapel-street, and on Saturday they were employed as usual with preparing iron for casting. Their workshop is at the rear of their dwellinghouse, extending in the direction of Albertstreet. The houses two storey high, in Vic-toria-street, and the premises belonging to them abut on Hawkeswood’s workshop The neighborhood is thickly populated for a colonial town, and principally by working people and their families. At the hour referred to, a loud explosion as of a cannon alarmed the whole town. The first thought of most people was that the mail steamer bad arrived, but the terrible concussion and vibration of the earth and houses indicated some disaster such as in a few minutes was known to have occurred. A long cloud of steam was visible going in the direction of the wind towards the Western quarter of the town. Crowds of excited people ran in every ditection in quest of the results of what they feared. Very slight search brought them to the spot where the deplorable accident we have now to describe, occurred. The workshop of Messrs. Hawkeswood and Son is a long wooden shed, roofed part of it with zinc and part with shingles. At the lower or eastern end where the lathes were, a man named David Craig, a moulder, James Hutchinson, and George Wicks, were employed. Mr Hawkeswood and his son were making preparations for the casting, which work was usually performed on the Saturday, in order to allow the castings time to cool before being taken out of the mould on Monday, It appears that from information gathered on the spot that they were about to set the fan in motion, by which the blast is communicated to the furnace where the iron is molten. Whether the water in the boiler had become so diminished in quantity as to a suddenly increasd pressure upon the boiler, or whether from a defect in the boiler itself, it suddenly burst, flying in fragments all over the neighborhood to a distance of three hundred yards. The workshop was literally carried into the air—that portion of the roof which was of zinc being torn into shreds, and that portion which was shingled being entirely demolished, the whole presenting a mass of ruinous debris. Stacks of pig iron were shifted by the force of the concussion. There was, as a matter of course, a momentary consternation, which paialized peoples thoughts. When access to the building was obtained by the police, who were amongst the first on the spot —they found the inmates of the building wedged between portions of the fallen roof, some of them severely wounded —all of them more or less scalded. One unfortunate person was found buried under a portion of the boiler, which appeared to have fallen upon him. Upon the removal of the superincumbent weight, a scene of the most frightful description presented itself. The wretched man was literally torn to pieces, the forehead being smashed in, the back of the scalp torn clean away, the brain protruding and the abdomen as it were ploughed open. Of course there was not the slightest indication of life. The only consolation in such a case can be that the sufferings of the poor man were scarcely for an instant. Mr Hawkeswood and his son were much cut about the head aud face. One of the men, Hutchinson, we believe had his hands and face severely lacerated. Wicks had a miraculous escape, suffering only some scalding and a severe fright. But the most astonishing episode of this catastrophe remains to be told; the crown of the boiler itself, weighing nearly two hundred weight, was blown over the houses on both sides of Victoria-street, alighting in the yard of John Kelsey, smashing a work bench and a fence dividing two allotments, then heeling over it rolled, as one might suppose a coin to roll, against the house of Joseph Davies, a wheelright, and smashing in the weather boards, fell back into the yard where it remains to the present lime. The distance being 285 feet, or 95 yards. At a distance of nearly 300 yards a heavy chuck or lathe spindle, weighing about a pound and

a half, was shot in through the window of a house belonging to Constable Furlong, smashing a stool in the apartment and striking Furlong himself, but without doing any other injury. The writer picked up a portion of a cog-wheel about six inches in length and two pounds weight, at the end of Wellesly and Albert-street. It happenned at the time of the explosion that two little children belonging to Mr Mills, furniture broker of the Cash Stores, Victoria-street, were playing in the yard at the back of the house. One of these, we regret to say, has sustained very severe injury, the thigh and arm being broken; the other we are informed sustaining severe scalding. Doctors Hooper, Giles Lee, and Merrett were in immediate attendance, and gave all the assistance in their power. It is of course impossible to estimate the probable results of the injuries sustained, or to estimate the damage done to property. Were it even so, it would perhaps be improper to anticipate the evidence which may be adduced at the coroner’s inquest, which will be held probably this day. We may, however, state as a matter of fact that the boiler was brought from England by Mr Hawkeswood himself. We have not, however, been informed how long since it was cleaned, or in what state was its interior. There are rumours enough, but it would, we think, be unfair to repeat them, as Messrs. Hawkeswood must be heavy sufferers in purse as they are in persons by the accident that has occurred. The unfortunate man David Craig was a moulder, a single man, 30 years of age, and lodged with Joseph Case, Wake-field-street. The body was removed to the Aurora Tavern, Victoria- street, where it now lies awaiting a coroner’s inquest. Craig was a member of the Odd Fellows’ Lodge, “ Gerstauty, Liverpool, 516.” FURTHER PARTICULARS. / An examination of the premises made yesterday affords more minute details of this shocking accident. At the lower end of the workshop was the fitter’s shed at which was George Wicks and James Hutchinson, also a man named William Onions. These have all been scalded about the body, but not severely. Hutchinson, we regret to say, had his nose split open, and was otherwise cut about the head. The force of the concussion was felt at Newton. Several peices of metal were also picked up on Saturday evening in the yard of the Aurora Tavern. Four steel punches in a tin case, were picked up in Al-bert-street, near Wellesley-street. One of the “ governor ” balls of the boilers struck the house of William Muudy, and was found iu the yard belonging to the premises. One of the most curious effects of the concussion was produced in a house next to Mr Hawkeswood, inhabited by a family named Blood. The window on the side of the building overlooking the workshop was open. The house, was of course terribly shaken, hut, strange to say, although the outer walls of the building were uninjured, the inner partitions on the ground floor have been shifted. The family had an exceedingly narrow escape. At present the building, or what was the building, is in a very dangerous state, the corrugated roof resting on a “ shears” hanging in shreds, any, or all of which the least motion would precipitate upon too curious adventurer below. The huge mass of iron which was the boiler is torn the whole length in several places, being folded over like a peice of cardboard under the influence of heat. The wonder indeed is, not that so much injury and destruction has taken place, bat that a great deal more had not been effected. Especial notice is due to Doctor Hooper, whose skill and promptitude did much to alleviate the dreadful paiu of the sufferers. Dr Lee also renderered good service. To the assistance by the following persons the police also bear testimony: William Mundy, builder, of Chapel-street, William Parr, a soldier of the 14th Regiment, Alfred Knight. There were others who lent the most generous aid bnt their names could not be ascertained. The coroner’s inquest will be held to day at 12 o’clock, at the Aurora Tavern. Whatever may be the results of the investigation as respects the state of the boiler, its peculiar shape, its age, or its cleanliness, whether, as stated by some, the explosion occurred owing to the neglect of one of the boys to to supply the boiler with water, having been told to do so, we trust that this calamitious occurence will not fail to arouse, the attention of the authorities to the manifest dangers attendant upon the working of such vast powers of destruction without superintendence or inspection of any kind. It is now nearly twelve mouths since we pointed out the advisability of the appointment of such an officer as an inspector of boilers. Had our advice been followed, the

present accident in all probability might ever hare occurred. Such an officer there is at home, whose duty it is to visit premises on which steam machinery is used. Thera must be nearly a hundred premises in Auckland on which steam is used; a good boiler should have an indicator. The official inspector in such case would see that this was the case in every instance. The supiueness of authority to our suggestions may have been the cause of this lamentable accident. The following is a list of the casualties:— David Craig, killed; Charles Hawkeswood, face, back and right side very much scalded, also cut about the forehead and eyes ; James Hawkeswood, severely scalded on the face and other parts of the body; Clare Mills, thigh broken and arm fractured : James Mills, very much scalded (these are the children of Mr Mills, “ Cash Stores,” Victoriastreet) ; James Hutchinson (iron founder), nose split open, face, neck, and right side scalded, George Wicks scalded slightly.