FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8146, 2 July 1906, Page 2

FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT.

• MAORI KILLED NEAR MIDHIRST. A Maori named George Reone, 21 years of age, while on his way home to Pipiriki from Tikorangi, fell from tire afternoon train at the Manganui bridge on Saturday and was killed, writes our Midhirst correspondent. In, or prior to falling, Reone struck his head, which was split open, on the wood and iron work of the bridge. The body was precipitated from the bridge, about fifty feet to the river below, and washed down stream a fenyards, until caught on some iron stakes driven in to support the bridge. The train did not pull up until Midhirst was reached, where Reone's brother and cousin reported the occurrence, stating that deceased's head had been knocked off.

They ran back to the bridge, and Mr George McDonald and F. Hastio, from the dairy factory, were also soon on the scene. The latter plunged into the river and brought the body to the bank, where efforts to restore animation were tried for a time.

The Stratford police were informed, and on their arrival two hours later, conveyed the body to the hotel to await the inquest. It is not clear, from the information available, whether deceased fell off the platform, or whether, while leaning out from the platform, his head came in contact with the side of the bridge, which is stated to be an unusually narrow one, and' has prcyiously been responsible for loss of life.