SERIOUS ACCIDENT AT A PUBLIC SCHOOL.

Auckland Star, Volume XXV, Issue 103, 1 May 1894, Page 3

SERIOUS ACCIDENT AT A PUBLIC SCHOOL.

COLLAPSE OF THE FLOOR OF AN

OUTHOUSE,

An extraordinary accident) happened yesterday ab the Erakineville Public School, Erskineville Road, pays the Sydney "Herald" of April 25i-.h. During the quarter-of-an-hour recess ab 11 a.m. the concrete floor over the pit of an outhouse collapsed. The outhouse was used by the girls and female infants, and the floor was composed of l|in of concrete mado from bricks and cement, and supported by iron bars, which were resting on a piece of 4 x 2£ hardwood timber, which was supported on a brick pier corbelled out from the main wall. The brick corbel broke in two at the northern end of the building, and thus the collapse was caused, precipitating 12 or 13 children who were in the building into the pit below. The pib was 5f t deep, and contained about 20in deep of refuse. The pit was 15fb long and 6fb wide. A terrible struggle took place among the imperilled children, and an alarm was at once raised. The teachers ab once cause to the assistance of the children, the firSfc on the scene being: a pupil teacher, Miss Stewart, who at once set about dragging the children out. Two, however, remained imprisoned, and one, Annie Wilson, was token oub to all appearances dead by Mr O JNeil, one of the teachers of the boys' school, assisted by his fellow-teachers. The usual remedies were applied for restoring the apparently drowned, one of the teachers, Miss St. Julian, reading the instructions from a printed copy kept in the school, while the other teachers followed the instructions. After a space of twenty minutei' breathing was restored, when Dr. TVindall, who had boen sent for, arrived and continued the work of resuscitation for a further period of 20 minutes. The child's clothes were then removed, and the little girl placed in blankets, and tak en to her home in Brandlin-streeb, Alexasidria, where she waa seen by Dr. Trindall several time 3 during the day, and she was placed under the care of a trained nurse. Later Drs. Trindall and Bonnebtiheld a consultation, and pronounced the child to be seriously affected by tho poisonous matter sucked into the lungs and stomach, and although slightly better, she was nob oub of danger. Tho remaining girls. that^lell into the pit, ranging in agea from 7 to 15, merely suffered from shock to the system, and although eighb of them are under Drs. Watson and Trindall's care they are on a fair way to recovery. The schoolmaster, Mr Herlihy, had the pib dragged, and shortly afterwards Constable Rex, who had arrived in the meantime, divested himself of a portion of his clothing, and went into the pit and closely examined ib. Among those who were injured is Ethel Watson, aged 15, daughter of Dr. Watson,, who attended the injured; Millie Bray, daughter of the local council clerk, also Millie Tucker, daughter of Alderman Tucker, and throe girls named M'Donald, Hall, and Humphries.