FATAL ACCIDENT.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume II, Issue 120, 14 May 1880, Page 3

FATAL ACCIDENT.

A lamentable and fatal accident happened on Sunday last to a child residing in Tory Channel, by which she was burnt to death. Briefly stated the facts are as follows :—On Sunday morning Mr Landed, who lives at Tc llua, Tory Channel, left his home with two daughters, aged 15 and 12 years respectively, and a man named Crawford, in a boat, to go to the Yellarton llun, a short distance away. The party landed at a place called Oyster Bay, about seven o’clock in the morning, when they separated, Landed and his daughters going one way and Crawford another. After walking some distance they set lire to a dense scrub that grows in the locality, and while engaged in this, other fires were seen, and one of Mr Landell’s daughters, named Ann Pilcher Lauded, twelve years of age, the one afterwards killed, said Mr Blood is coming, and immediately afterwards the father and daughters were joined by Mr Mood, who had been firing the scrub in other places. Shortly afterwards the party separated, Mr Landed descending towards tiie beach by one spur, Mr Flood by another, and the two girls by a third. When at the bottom Mr Landed lit several fires, and saw his eldest daughter coming towards him from a spur, lighting fires as she came ; when she called out that her sister Ann was getting burnt. The father at once ran towards the spot, when he heard Mr Flood cry out that the child was burning. Mr Flood states that he heard the child cry out, and looking saw her enveloped in flames, that he saw her fad down, and hastening to her saw she was dead. The poor child was dreadfully burnt about the neck and chest, ad her clothing was consumed, and nothing remained ou the body but the boots, and a part of the socks the fire could not get at. In tire opinion of the father death was preceded by insensibility, caused by smoke from the burning scrub, and the poor child was thus mercifully saved from the fire. It is supposed that the catastrophe was brought about by the girl trying to cross from the spur on which she was, to that on "which her father was, aud encountering a wad of fire from burning scrub six feet in height, was surrounded in au instant, and cut oil from any possibility of making an effort for her own preservation, due sbdigest part of this lamentable affair is the haste with which the fatal ending took place. Only a few minutes elapsed from the time Mr Flood saw the child’s clothing in flames until he was at her side, yet when he reached her she was quite dead. There appears to have been no mistake abi t this, as the father when he saw her was convinced life had departed, and the eyes of affection would not be likely to admit such a possibility unless the signs were so distinct that there could be no mistske.

The matter was reported to the Coroner, J. AlleD, Esq., on Tuesday, and after taking into consideration the Hti''roueding circumstances, that the evidence of the father was corroborated in all particulars by that of an independent witness; that it would not be possible to obtain a jury near the spot : that the death having taken place on Suaday, it was not desirable the body should be kept unburied longer than possible ; that there was no probabliity of obtaining &Dy further evidence ; aud finally that there were no suspicious circumstancs attending the case the Coroner decided that nothing eould be gained by holding a Coroner’s inquest. He, therefore, gave an order for the burial of the child, being satisfied that a more or.tended investigation would not result in obtaining fuller particu lars about the sad occurrence.—Press'.