THREE PEOPLE HURT

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 210, 18 June 1935, Page 3

THREE PEOPLE HURT

LORRY AND CAR COLLIDE. THE TRUCK CATCHES FIRE. VICTIMS GRAVELY INJURED. (Per Press Association.) AUCKLAND, June 17. A man and two women were discovered gravely injured soon after 4 o'clock this morning on the Great South road. They were: Able-Seaman John Francis Whitehouse, aged 21, single, nayal .rating on HM.S. Diomede; compound fracture of skull, fractured arm and severe burns to back and legs j condition very serious. f Miss Florence Wigmore, aged A), oi Kingsland Avenue, Mount Talbot; concussion and fractured skull; condition critical.. . -p, Miss Judith Blake, aged 19, of Dominion Road, Mount Eden; superficial cuts and concussion; condition not serious. , ~ All three were in a motor-car. It came into violent collision with a motor-lorry, which caught fire. The collision occurred on a level stretch oi concrete near Takanim. lhe car, which was a light one, was wrecked, and the three-ton truck caught fire and was destroyed A resident nearby who heard tue crash said that immediately afterwards the driver of the truck came u« his house and asked for help- When he reached the scene the driver oi the -„ar was lying beside the road covered by a rug. His clothes had been on fire, nut the truck driver had extinguished the flames. One unconscious rirl was lyiuK beside the road and another girl sitting on the side oi the ditch talking incoherently. Tins gjrJ said there was a second raai in the car, but although a search was made no trace of him could be fou iu One of the girls said that the driver of the car had takci her and ber fdend to TakMsini to exchange a motor car. The exchange had been made at Mokau, and they were returning in a leisurely way when the collision occurred. Another resident said that the driver of the car was thrown on to the middle of the road and the door of the car was lying on top of him. There was a burning stream of petrol from the truck to the man, which was about 50 yards away. A spare tank of petroi had been ripped open and the contents had leaked from the point of impact to Where the truck had stopped. A spat i; from the car had ignited the petrol and fire ran along the roadj to the truck, which was loaded with furniture and merchandise. The truck and its loadj were sooa in flames. - ,