CHILDREN INJURED BY TERRIFIC EXPLOSION

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1024, 15 July 1930, Page 1

CHILDREN INJURED BY TERRIFIC EXPLOSION

DOG UPSETS GUNPOWDER

ESCAPE FROM BLAZING HOUSE BOY FOIIOWS SISTERS’ SCREAMS RELIEF SOUGHT IN A WATER-HOLE From Our Own Correspondent OPOTIKI, Today. A TERRIFIC gunpowder explosion at Waimana Settlement, about 24 miles from Opotiki, resulted in the three children of Mr. Addison being severely injured and his house being badly damaged.

Dr. Budd, medical superintendent tin Opotiki Public Hospital, who went out to the accident, said the Scene was indescribable. He hardly knew which child to attend first, all were so terribly burned. 1 The names of the children are: Donald Addison, aged 12; Effie, aged TO, and Shirley, aged eight. It is considered miraculous that all were pot burned to death in the house, jfhich caught Are. The accident occurred about 5.30 last evening. The parents of the children were absent at the time in Opotiki. It is believed the accident was really caused by a retriever dog which, it is thought, pulled a parcel containing 10 rounds of gunpowder off a shelf in the scullery. The boy, going to light the fire, went out into the scullery and struck a match, which dropped on to the powder, which immediately ignited. A terrific explosion followed, the boy being blown right up the corridor and partly stunned. The two

girls were also blown some distance. When the boy recovered consciousness he found his sisters were missing. He started to walk the quarter of a mile ,to a neighbour's named Wardlaw. He could hear the girls screaming in the distance, and, following the sound, found them trying to stop their pain by getting in a water-hole.

All three reached Mr. Wardlaw's house, where they were given immediate attention. Dr. Budd was notified and went out immediately to Waimana.

Mr. Wardlaw went to Mr. Addison's house as soon as possible and found it full of smoke. All the carpets were on tire. He extinguished the flames with buckets of water. The windows were blown out and the back wall blown to pieces. The children were brought to the Opotiki Hospital this morning, all suffering from severe burns, especially all exposed parts. Their faces, eyes, hands and legs are badly injured. •