MINE TRAGEDY AT TARATU.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 2837, 24 January 1925, Page 2

MINE TRAGEDY AT TARATU.

ONE KILLED, MATE T? ESC LED UNINJURED. Dunedin, Last Might. A tragedy occurred at (he Taratu Co’s mine (between Milton and Stirling) yesterday afternoon. Jas. McGowan, a single man, aged 53, and David Jordan, a married man, were working - in a shaft which had been closed owing to lire and which (lie management was preparing to permanently (dose with gravel! There was a big slide of gravel which' buried both men to their necks. Jordan was rescued len hours biter uninjured, but McGowan had been crushed to death.

Shifts have been working tilling in the main shaft at ISO ft. and the air shafts with gravel to endeavour to suppress the tire, which started at about Christmas.

About 20ft. of gravel had been put into one compartment of the main shaft and just before knockid! time (4 p.m.) the twojnen descended to remove some dividing timber to let the gravel run through into another compartment of the slia ft.

While they were doing this, the timber higher up burst out and let (be loose gravel through. Both men were buried.

Jordan, fortunately, was pushed into a corner, where lie was slightly protected. He tried to pull his comrade to safety, but McGowan was caught by the fall and covered. When the men did not put in an appearance, the alarm was given and on searching it was found that the two men were entombed. In the corner where Jordan was were some down pipes for conveying steam in the mine water pumps. Those above tapped these pijies to let Jordan know that help was near, and Jordan was able to answer by extracting the hammer from McGowan’s belt.

Volunteers were called for and within half an hour 30 men were on the scene. Only experienced men were allowed to work on the easing built a I nearest point of the fall of gravel, which wos removed in buckets and Ihe casing built up as gravel was removed. Work was continued till about 3.30 a.m. when Jordan was reached. He was standing upright, buried to the chin and in a weak condition. He had suffered from shell-shock at the war. He was brought to the. surface and taken io I lie Kaitangata Hospital. In freeing him, it was discovered that McGowan was lying across the shaft, face downwards, and coverid by a quantity of timber and gravel. Life was extinct. The rescuers ■ annul remove the body till the timber and gravel are shifted. Shifts w eve working to-day endeavouring in cut the timber and remove tbe gravel, and they expect to recover > Lt- body some time to-morrow.