ACCIDENTALLY DROWNED.

Hokitika Guardian, 9 January 1920, Page 4

ACCIDENTALLY DROWNED.

EIGHT MEN UNABLE TO SWIM

CORONER’S INQUEST AND COMMENTS.

At the coronial inquiry at Wanganui into the death of Mr Sydney Westbrook, of Wanganui, who was accidentally drowned, the follow:g facts are supplementary to the telegraphic details already published:— The accident was Vitnessed by Ernest Leslie Rohloff. He said that a high sea was running at the time. Mr Westbrook got into a small boat to shift a line attached to the stone punt to another point on the wall. A heavy! sea comle oyer the wall and swamped the boat. Mr Westbrook climbed on to the wall as the boat sank. He started to crawl on his hands and knees on top of the wall when another heavy sea canto up and washed him into the river. Ho struggled on top of the water fot a while. There were other men on the punt, and witness ran along the beach to the Kaionb for assistance. There were no ropes or anything on the punt, that could bo thrown to help Mr Westbrook. The water in the river was very rough; a good swimmer could have lived in it. Mr Westbrook struggled for five minutes before he disappeared. One of the firemen ifrom the Kaione ran down from the dhedge with a life-buoy and rope, but by the time he arrived on the scene Mr Westbrook had disappeared. In the meantime the men on the punt had thrown out a length of line, but it was too short. The Kaione was about one hundred yards from the punt. Seven men were in the boat none of them could swim. After further evidence bad been heard the coroner said: “This is an upfortunate occurrence, for which nobody seems to have been actually to blame at the time. It is probable that if the p„nt had some life-saving equipment upon it, deceased might not have been drowned, ; but ,on the other hand, l was qni tc possible that lie might not have been saved. It appears that not one of the eight men engaged on the punt, in a rough sea, could swim. It is a singular circumstance, and it is quite surprising that in a seaport, of eight men working on the waterfront, m a town with many excellent baths, a! river, and the ocean beach in which to learn to swim, none of them, were able to swim. It points out its own moral.” The verdict was accidental death by drowning while engaged in repairing harbour works.