The Rakaia Disaster.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Issue 14, 25 March 1899, Page 2

The Rakaia Disaster.

The inquest on the victims of the Tiak.ua r.ulwas accideut was concluded about h ilf past nine on Mond.n ui»ht, when the juiy brought m the following veidict . — That the deceased Mary Ann Fi inks, IJoso IJaiwood, Finny E. Jones and I'leharcd E. Do llenzi Kuight ]iowden met their d^ath by accident m a railwa\ collision at the Raik.ua railway station on the evening of March 11th, 1890, and that such collision was caused In the negligence oi Charles Ilcm \ C.iiier, the duver of the seoond train, in manifennin^ too high a rate at speed, and thereby not having sufficient and pioper control o\ or Ins train m approaching the Hakaia- station. ii was bi ought out in eudsnee that the regulations are voiy strict, that duveis must not allow their teams to maintain a higher rate ol speed than 33 miles an honr. The second p\coision tram, the one which caused the accident tiavolled the distance from C'lit't-fsey to Kalcaia. some five mile, at a speed ol 45 miles an hour, without allow, ing for slowing down or the girde agains lire train, a pace inconsistent with safety. At thai i. peed the duver should have shut oil steam appio\nnately half a mile further south than ho did shut it oif. The li'smlaliou^ hny that, " The ab&ance ot a Signal ib oidmarilv shown, or a signal impeifectly exhibited, must be considered a danger signal, and treated accordingly, and the fact reported to the signalman oi sfcatiomnaster " In view of the fact tliat pioceedingß must be taken against him, Caiter, the duvex, risfused to give evidence, but the fireman admitted th.-tt though he did not observe any danger signal, neither did he observe one indicating that the line was clear. It also came oat that the signalling arrangements at Ihikaia are not as good as they ought to be. The driver was remanded to the 2.6 th on a charge of manslaughter, bail in two sureties of £]0Q and himself 1100.