FATAL ACCIDENT AT NAPIER.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1068, 22 September 1879, Page 2

FATAL ACCIDENT AT NAPIER.

[by telegraph.] Napier, Sept. 20.

A fatal accident occurred a little before noon to-day to three men working at the reclamation works. There were a lot of men engaged in getting stuff from a hill in Chaucer road, commonly known as " Soapsuds Gully," and five of them were inside a tunnel filling a truck, when a large land slip occurred, stones and earth falling on the roof of the tunnel with such force and weight that the top timbers of the tunnel could not resist, and the whole woukl have utterly collapsed but for trucks that were on the rails. Two of the men managed to get out by crawling under the trucks, and guu-irig out at the mouth of the tunnel. Ouu had a narrow escape, being caughr, on the leg by a descending mass of earth. He managed, however, to extricate himself. After a while it was found practicable to ascertain, by crawling under the trucks, how the poor imprisoned fellows fared. Two appeared to be dead, but one was alive, and brandy was passed to him in a sponge. Relays of as many men as could work together were put on, but it was two before the bodies were got out, all thrfe being dead. It is supposed that the third man (John Quin) was suffocated by the fine sand that filled the space in which he was. He was heard to ask a little before how long it would be before they would be getting him out, and tken when lie was called there was no answer. Quinn was a young fellow of 21, and leaves a wife and child. The other two were James Clarke, 3G years, who leaves a wife and 7 children; and Bartelleto Farneo, an Italian (unmarried).