FATAL ACCIDENT AT WIROKINO

Shannon News, 9 October 1928, Page 3

FATAL ACCIDENT AT WIROKINO

DRAY CAPSIZES AND KILLS

DRIVER. A fatal accident occurred on Saturday," by which an obi and well-known local resident, Thomas Arthur Thorn, aged 74. lost his life. Mr Thorn was emploved bv Messrs Ryder and Nicholson on their fann at Wirokino. H-' was a single m?n and had been in the district, many years. On Saturday he had trken some benzine to a tractor driver, Stanley Debonnairc, and at 10 o'clock left to return to camp with a load of wood. At half-past four, the -latter on his way back to camp found the dray capsized with Thorn dead, pinned under the wood. EVIDENCE AT INQUEST. An inquest into the circumstances was held at the Courthouse Levin, yesterday morning by Mr T. Brown, District Coroner. v Evidence of identification was given by Francis Nicholson, one of the partners of Ryder and Nicholson. They had employed deceased for the past 11 years. As'far as witness knew he had no relatives.

Stanlcv Dcbonuaire, farm labourer, deposed 'that on Saturday he was engaged ploughing with a tractor on the farm at Wirokino. About 0.30 a.m. deceased brought a drum of kerosene. After he had done this .he loaded up some manuka firewood on his dray and left about 10 a.m. with the load for his whare about a mile from where witness was working. Witness knocked off work about 4.20 p.m. and came out of the paddock for the purpose of returning home. About twenty chains from where he was working he found the dray capsized and the horse standing by. Witness ran forward thinking something was wrong, and found the deceased Iving with a small quantity of the wood*bn top of him. Witness pulled the wood oft' him and found that he was dead. The track was rough, but he knew it quite well as .lie had frequently passed along it. The deceased was riding on the load when he left, and witness could not account for the overturning of the dray. Constable Bagrie gave evidence as to removing the body, which had, a slight cut under the left - eye and a small bruise on the back. No bones appear to have been broken. The place where the dray capsized was on the side of a sand ridge and in witness's opinion the road was steep enough to throw the dray over. He had known deceased for*the last eighteen years. The Coroner returned a verdict that deceased was accidentally killed by the overturning of the dray.