BUTTER FACTORY EXPLOSION.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 220, 16 September 1924, Page 7

BUTTER FACTORY EXPLOSION.

TESTING ROOM ABLAZE. 1 v _ i MAN SERIOUSLY INJURED. - 1 Through an explosion of methylated I spirits at the Awahuri butter factory c on Sunday afternoon, a young man ' named William Smith was seriously ' burned about tbe face, arms, and feet ' (says the Manawatu Daily Times). ' A loud report at 3.30 p.m. warned ' those in and near the factory that J something was amiss, and investigation ' revealed a serious state of affairs in ' the testing-room. ' Smith, who is a young man, 22 years of age, and a buttermaker, had gone to ' the testing-room to get some methylated ' spirits, wliich arc used for testing the 1 moisture content in the butter. It. is not known what happene.*, but heat in some form must have ignited the fumes, and the four-gallon tin burst into flame right in the face of the unfortunate man. The small 10 x 4 concrete testing-" room was instantly a seething mass of flame. In~his agony, the victim rushed for one of the doors, but apparently 1 forgot which way it opened, and, being < unable to get out, he rushed back 1 through the flames to the other door, i thus increasing his own hurt. ' When assistance came. Smith was c found to be very severely burned about t the face. The arms, right up to the t elbows, and tlie feet also, were badly s affected. ( Dr. Hunter Will, in response to an i urgent call, was on the spot in a few ( minutes, and after relieving the vie- i tims pain as much as possible, ordered ] his immediate removal to the hospital. f At a late hour last evening lie was still < conscious, and no change in his con- ] dition was reported. ] It is fortunate for the Awahuri Dairy , Company that the test-room was built j of concrete, otherwise a serious con- ( flagration might have occurred right at , the commencement of a busy season. i Mr. Smith's parents reside at Woodvillc.