RAILWAY ACCIDENTS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 11, 1 June 1914, Page 6

RAILWAY ACCIDENTS

PREVIOUS DISASTERS, The most eei-foui* mail way accident which baa ever qccurrcd in" New Zealand was the collision at Rakak on the evening o'f March 11, 1899.. Two heavy excursion (trains were on tjhtair way back to Ohrisitchnrch 'filled with pimictars, owt) 20 minutes ahead of t'lie other. The front one stopped at Rakaia to wait -for the .passing of a trolin \k.\uvS fpiutihl. There wore no signals, and n. man was senjt wi'Ui a lamp' to stop the sceondi .excursion train, but wuh too into to avert disaster. An aittempt was made to remove the front train ahead, but the other crashed into it, and two o? tfue rearmost vehicl'en were to'estoped. Three yiwing women andl a cliald were killed,' and Iwtween j 30 ami 40 people were more or less geri-on.-ily injured. An <'x-(raoj-dina.ry colOMon occurred at New Lynn, a few miles north,, -of Auckland, on May 2S last year. " A ■pntseiiger train eamihji from (('.tie North, with about 70 people on board,, ran into a locomotive pfoee to the New Lynn station, the train hcing at 'tthc time on a small bridge over a deep cri'clc. The j second and tihind cawiages were completely telescoped into each otlitar, ajid the ipiwsenftrra had a. miraculous escape. A Iron t 20 peCpta were hunt, but nobody was Wiled.

TM-' mn:<L soriou* mjlway accident in the. Wellington district owrored 011 Katunlay morning, Soptnmher 11. 1880, when two carriages ami a van, fomniriis; |Kti\t of a train coming to Wellington from b\\c, Wniraraipa, were blown ovei the Himutak-a In-line, ami rolled down into the valley. Throe child ran— Pharazyn (a daughter of the late Mr. (Carles i'harazyn)!. Nicholas, and Quimi —were killed, and a number of passcna"rs injured. On .7line. U.", 1005 'two men wore killtv.l in an accident at ifilra-iicy's 'Crossing, aibcut ten inile-i from ChriMylntmh. Very IKwy rains had caused the War maknriri to Hood, arid the railway .had been weakened by an invisible wa h-o'.it. Tim line pp.r.o way luirlk-v the weij/it i;'f an engine drawing (the imM-duy ':i' 'n from Chrinldliuiv.li to Kaiapoi. and :i'V •mills broke, caipaiislnig •('•be wigijv. Tihe fuwt and second carriage.' were r;uiirc»'d iicgether, and Messrs. 11. .1. A!evaji«l)T and John Tiidhnrd*. both c,f wore kiilbd in n most extraordintiiy w;w. their Heads -being nlim..-■■! , rv.:«l by'the ed™.-> of cno carriage- riwif aai.'nvd iWici cdioje. of the offer i-amage. A 'third •man had both lees broken'. A goods train, from Auckland fi> TClito rum .nin away oji Ang-nst. 4. IOT. find pitched over an embankment, Hie guard, J. T.wve, being killed, and <!i!l.-M others injured. The train was going un a steep- incline, and ■nddciilv be-nrM detaflhed frcin tlhe engine. The WwitinghoiKG did not act yjwwrvV. flivlt'he •\vhsole train twin back until it rwrih'odi si aidvftit, and tPieh 'ttopied down iian «n-»-;t»nkment into a gully A<> *«** Jxtoff-