THE FATAL ACCIDENT AT ALEXANDRA.

Tuapeka Times, Volume VI, Issue 1294, 18 September 1873, Page 5

THE FATAL ACCIDENT AT ALEXANDRA.

(From our Dunstan Correspondent.) A melancholy and fatal accident which has cast a gloom over the district, occurred at Messrs. Theyers and Beck's Brewery, near Alexandra, on the afternoon of Friday last, the sth instant, by which a young man named Edward Thompson, principally in the employ of Mr. Beck, at Clyde, but at the time was working at the Brewery, lost his life ; James Simmonds, miner, Butchers, had one of his thighs broken ; and JJatnes Hessan, also from Butchers, was slightly injured. It appears they were engaged in sinking the fermenting tub, which had been already sunk 4 or 5 feet below the foundation of the building, and while undermining a sort of retaining wall or abutment to put in a deeper foundation, the whole gable of the Brewery fell in, smothering up the deceased and partly smothering the others. The full particulars were given at the inquest, which was held in the Geelong Hotel, Alexandra, on Saturday afternoon, before W. L. Simpson, Esq., Coroner of the District, and jury of twelve. James Hessan deponed — I am a miner, and occasionally am engaged at mason work. I have been recently enployed at such work by Theyers and Beck at their Brewery, near Alexandra. James Simmonds and the deceased Edward Thompson were at work with me. I identify the body now before me. About 4 o'clock yesterday he was engaged wheeling stones and mortar for Simmonds and myself. We were taking out sand and gravel from below the gable wall of the Brewery, and replacing it with stone for the purpose of lowering the fermenting tub. Deceaped was also engaged wheeling away the sand and gravel we were throwing out on to a platform about 8 or 9 feet high. "We had finished building for the day, and Simmonds and I were engaged throwing out the gravel on to the platform, when all of a sudden I was smothered in dust, and forced a distance of Bor 9 feet. I was stupified at the time, and have no recollection of anything from the time the dust fell until I was picked up. I was bruised, but not ..severely. Simraonds, who was beside me, had his thigh broken. Through subsequent examination of the ruins, I found that the gable had been built on sand ; and that by the work we were doing, we had undermined the single wall which, ! to a certain extent, was the support of the gable. I would not have undertaken the job if I had known that the singlewallwas the support of the gable. I do not think it was known to Theyers and Beck. We took out about a foot of gravel at a time, and replaced it i with Btone. We had finished half the work when the accident happened. I apprehended danger of the single wall giving way yesterday morning, but not of the gable, as I had no idea then that the Bingle wall 'supported the gable. We put in wood to bind the new and old building together ; and placed two stays across the arch or entrance to give us warning and allow us time to I escape. I Thomas Sussell, carter and labourer in the employ of Messrs. Theyers and Beck, said — I was working outside the Brewery yesterday, about 4 o'clock 1 heard a noise, and on looking saw that the gable wall of the Brewery had fallen. I ran to look for the men who were at work. Saw last witness and Simmonds, but did not see deceased. I called assistance. "We got Hessan and Simmonds out, and were engaged about an hour in getting out the deceased, who was then quite dead. I spoke to Hessan in the morning of the danger of the work they were engaged in. He said he did not like the look of it himself. Thomas M'Q-elligot, cellarman to Messrs Theyers and Beck, corroborated the former witness as to the falling in of the wall, andjextricating of the men. He thought the work was dangerous ; and remarked to Siinmonda that it looked " shakery " — T moan the work that Simmonds was doing, as I thought the old building was strong. I would not haye liked to have been at the

work, as it was so far down below the foundation. I was of opinion that the wall spoken of as the single wall was a support to the gable as well as a place for the fermenting tub. It was the undermining and building of this wall that brought the gable down. "William Theyers said — I am one of the partners in the firm of Theyers and Beck. Deceased was in our employ yesterday ; he was serving Simmonds and Hessan, who were engaged in sinking the fermenting room of the Brewery about 3 feet, and building a strong abutment. In pointing out to Simmonds what I wanted done, I pointed out the difficulty he would have to contend with in taking out the earth or gravel from below soch a weight as the gable wall ; and told him not to take more than 15 or 18 inches out at a time. I said I would have to depend on him to make a good job of it. I could not be personally there. I had full confidence in him. The main building was built before the fermenting tub was sunk four or five feet below the foundation. The wall, in place of the fermenting tub, was for support to the gable, or rather the foundation of the gable, and the new abutment was to be under the old one. He knew that Simmonds was not a mason, but that he had done mason's work. A. Finlay Thomson, medical practitioner residing at Clyde, said he found several scars and bruises on the body, but no fracture of bones The mouth and nostrils were completely plugged with blood and sand. The appearance of the pupils, and the condition of the nostrils and mouth, indicated that death had taken place by suffocation. After a few remarks from the Coroner, the jury, without much deliberation, gave a verdict of accidental death.