RAILWAY SMASH

Hokitika Guardian, 26 May 1930, Page 6

RAILWAY SMASH

ON MARLBOROUGH LINE

By Telegraph—Per Press Association

BLENHEIM, May 25.

The advantage of the aeroplane ii. the case oi : a sudden emergency was weU illustrated on Saturday afternoon when ten men were injured on the South Main Trunk' railway works at Tirohanga, 45 miles from Blenheim. On the receipt of a summons by telephone, Dr. J. F. Bennett arranged for the services of one of the Marlborough Aero Club’s Moths and by this means lie was on the scene of the accident and was attending to the injured within an hour of the. occurrence, and in less than half ait lion! after leaving Blenheim. The injured men are: — ROBT. J. W'LL aged about 45 years, married, with four or five children. His injuries ar e a crushed chest •'a fractured skull, ilis condition is reported tn K- grave. Wallace was employed on Murray’s Woodside station until alxnit two iron Bn ago, when he secured work with the Public Works Department.

THOMAS KING, aged about (5/ years, believed to.be single, with relatives in Shannon. He h,:is a lacerated back, and, suffers from strain. His condition is serious.

J. MILLS, married, with no children. He has torn sinews in the. left leg and other injuries.

MASON, a single man. with ruptured nui'cVs of t.-M' ’•'-oV. and a lacerated wound in the left hand. R.QV GTWORD' a married man, with a broken jaw and nose, and other lesser injuries.

A. DTTNCAN, has, severe crushing of . the left foot.

A. PETERSEN, who sustained, a broken nose and a wound in the head.

P-. Vl7 f T Ssustained scalp wound, "ml a strained hack.'

C. ROSS, with minor injuries. M' ITRtnL HICKEY, who is injured in the face.

The ten men were part of a gang whi'h VnVl engaged in platelayer between "Mrohang/a and Taitiui. When tin' knock-off whistle, blew at n)1 Snrurdav.' tliev entered a railway truck on wb’ r> h a hut had been creeled', and was alwaysused for conveying the; men . roTri their camps to the scene of their labours. A small engine was hitched on, and it set off in the. direction of Wharanui. where' the men’s camps were located. ' All went well until Tirohanga vrne vonc-.lu'd. but here the truck-hut left the rails just as. ;a bridge was (reached. The vehicle, turned completely upside; ■ d.owp, and, with the ten''men ‘'trapried inside, it crashed into a creek bed fourteen feet or so below. The lint, which was 6 : msilv built, of corrugated iron, coliawml when it struck the ground, and the horrified engine driver and fireman, who at-once pulled up when the truck parted company with the engine, hurried back to the scene. They thought all were dead, as there was no sound from the wreckage, ond it mroYwi impossible 'that anyone could live under the weigb’t of 1C inverted, truck. . / Moans and cries soon rent the, air,, and, with the assistance of another gang of men. who were returning to Wharanui ‘by toad, the victims were extricated fropi the wreckage with considerable difficulty.

Meantime a messenger was sent to the Tirahanga'Homestead, which was close handy, and jtrs A. Rittson, Thomas, after telephoning to Blenheim for a doc-tor, repaired with Mass iAldworfch, of Wellington, to the scene where they rendered yeoman service in tending the injured, and earned On -dmiratiou of all the men.

/The least injured men were despatched to Wharanui by motor truck, and the others remained on the scene of the accident until the ' arrival of Dr Bennett. .

Captain .Chandler, who flew the aeroplane, landed on excellent ground at Tirohanga, which has recently been adopted as one of the Aero Cl nib’s stations for short cross-country flights. Here a car was waiting to, convey the doctor to the scene the accident, about a mile distant. Wallace and King were conveyed to the Marlborough Hospital in an ambulance, and their condition was reported as satisfactory late this afternoon.

The others, are still at Wharanui, but will probably be sent to Blenheim on Monday.