OHURA TRAGEDY.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3507, 19 June 1920, Page 5

OHURA TRAGEDY.

INQUEST ON VICTIMS. CAUSE OF EXPLOSION UNEXPLAINABLE. There are practically no new details concerning the frightful happenings some eight miles out of Tatu, or some 20 miles beyond Ohura, on Tuesday morning last. An eye-witness of the place after the explosion of gelignite, stated that the whole back of the dwelling house was blown right away, the double brick chimney being scattered broadcast. Some of the fragments of glass and pieces of the stove were hurled to a distance of a chain and a quarter. The full names and ages of the victims are:—Janet Ure Lilburn, aged 20 years 10 months; Mary Whitehead England, aged 23 years 5 months; and Jean Margaret England, the 16 months' old child of Mrs M. W. England. The two last-named were the wife and child of Mr Wm. F. England, a farmer at Tatu, while the first-named was Mrs England's sister, who was on a holiday at the farm. The inquest was held on Wednesday afternoon and evening, by the acting-Coroner, Mr W, K. Williams, of Ohura, and a jury of four. Constable Fleming conducted the police case. ! Evidence was given by Dr Herbert Hilton Cheeseman, Wm. Froud Keevil England, Henry Philp Lilburn and Charles Horace Stanley Jennings. Dr Cheeseman said that on Tuesday June 15, he. was called to Mr England's place. He examined the bodies. Miss LOurn had a severe fracture of the left side of the head and an extensive fracture of the skull, sufficient to cause instantaneous death. The child had perforated wounds in the abdomen, involving the liver and injuries to the heart, sufficient, to cause almost if not quite, instantaneous death. These wounds appeared to have been caused by fragments of metal driven at a high speed. Having seen the building, witness was satisfied that the explosion would have been sufficient to cause the projecting of pieces of metal. Mr England deposed that he and the workmen had been using explosives during the past week;. On this occasion only he had taken a 51b packet of gelignite into the house overnight and had warmed it in "two utensils (keeping it still in the packet) and then placed it in a box inside the wall in the kitchen three or four feet from the stove. The position was not in a direct line with the stove and that heat from this could not strike it directly nor could a s park fly out on to it. The packet was left there overnight. In the morning when he went out to milk the packet was still there. Master Henry Lilburn saw it there 20 minutes before the accident. While witness was milking, the explosion occurred. He rushed over to the j house and came across his wife, she •basing still conscious. At this stage I his brother-in-law and Mr Jennings I came running up and Mrs England was shifted to the front bedroom which was still all right. They then searched for the others, and Mr England's sister-in-law was found dead in her bedroom under the wall which had collapsed. The dead body of the J baby wa s then found under the de- | bris of the "kitchen. \ The jury brought in a ve'rdict, re- | garding the deaths of Janet Ure Lil- J burn and Jean M. England, that they I were killed through an explosion of a packet of gelignite which unfortunately had been left in the kitchen over- : 'night, the cause of the explosion being unexplainable. On the death of Mrs England a verdict was returned that she died from shock caused through injurie s received by an ex-, i plosion of gelignite which unfortun- \ ately had been left in the kitchen 1 over-night, the cause of the explosion being unexplainable.