BRUNNER COAL MINE

Hokitika Guardian, 17 January 1921, Page 4

BRUNNER COAL MINE

CM VS IXO O’fc' A BIMIXMO. I [IIY TEIiEfJ ItAl’H— l'Elt I’ll ESS ASSOCIATION] WELLINGTON, 11. I .Messrs Williams (Mayor of Brunner), I Dixon (President of th'e Grey Valley I -Miiiers’ Union), and Pilcher waited on the Prime Minister to-day regarding the dosing of the railway and traffic bridge at Brunner by the Railway Department. The bridge has been declared unsafe for traffic. -Mr Williams said that if the bridge remained closed it would mean the stagnation of the borough and the closing of the mine, and the people of Taylorville and Brunner would be driven from their homes. Mr Massey: The mine is nearly finished, is it not? -Mr WiHiams: Only the present workings. -Mr Williams suggested that something might be done in the way of strengthening the bridge. The sudden closing of the bridge had come as a thunderbolt to the people. He did not think it was the intention of the owners ol the property to close the mine, even when the present working were finished. He believed that further development work would ho undertaken.

Mr Dixon stated that during the war when other miners were going slow and striking and hindering progress in every way, the Grey Valley miners remained loyal and their output had not decreased. Sixty homes were dependent upon this mine, ns far (is he conld see, there was coal enough to keep the mine going till the end of March. Mr Pilcher said it was hoped to get many thousands of tons of coal yet from another part of the property. It was suggested that if the bridge could not be used as at present, or sufficiently stuengthened, some means of getting te coal across the river by trolleys on a wire might be adopted.

Air Massey stated that the chief engineer of railways (Mr McLean) would be instructed to report fully on the state of the bridge and in regard to the suggestions put forward. On the nature of his report would depend what action would be taken.