DEATH OF YOUNG MAN

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21977, 29 December 1936, Page 5

DEATH OF YOUNG MAN

| ♦_ DROWNING IN CLYDE RIVER CORONER'S COMMENT AT INQUEST USE OF ROPES IN CROSSING MOUNTAIN STREAMS The opinion that a regulation should be adopted by the Canterbury Mountaineering Club compelling its members to adopt such measures as would ensure their safety in similar circumstances to those which resulted in the death of Samuel Dslabere Barker, aged 21 years, of Ashburton, who was drowned in the Clyde river, Rangitata Gorge, on Christmas Day, was expressed by the Ashburton coroner (Mr E. C. Bathurst) at the inquest which was held yesterday. A verdict of accidental drowning was returned. The accident occurred when Barker together with J. C. Pattle and G. A. K. Keliy. members of the Erewhon branch (Ashburton) of the Canterbury Mountaineering Club were attempting to cross the Clyde which was dirty, at a point about seven miles above the Erewhon Homestead. The three young men who were linked with ice axes were swept off their feet in the strong current. "While recognising the bravery and resourcefulness of the three young men, I cannot too strong!y repeat the advice given by me in a similar case just 12 months ago. that ropes should be carried and used in a proper manner while crossing mountain streams of this nature," said Mr Bathurst. He expressed the opinion that if possible a safety device should be fitted to mountaineering packs to enable them to be discarded quickly. He said he felt that the weight of the packs carried and the difficulty in removing them in such circumstances as those placed before him, constituted a grave danger in crossing a stream. The coroner strongly recommended that the advice of persons acquainted with the conditions should be obtained and acted upon before attempts such as that made by the three young men were undertaken. Before the verdict was given, Mr H. L. Barker, father of S. D. Barker, addressed the court saying that in his opinion the evidence disclosed a lack of organisation. He wished to draw attention to the fact that had the young men told Mr T. S. Johnstone, owner of Erewhon Station, that they were going to attempt to ford the Clyde river, he would have forbidden it. Mr Johnstone knew the river was dangerous, so dangerous that he would not have crossed it with a pack horse. "This | tragedy might save a life in the future if a rider is added to the effect that the consent of property owners or persons with knowledge of the conditions should be obtained before similar attempts are made," said Mr Barker. Sergeant J. F. Clcary conducted the case for the police. Swept Off Their Feet George Alexander Kirk KeNy, a clerk, of Ashburton, said that he, J. C. Pattle, and S. D. Barker left Ashburton on Christmas Day with the intention of reaching the Broadleaf Hut the same evening. After leaving Erewhon Station they crossed the Lawrence river, which presented no difficulty. Each of them was carrying a pack which contained provisions for three days and weighed about 451b. They proceded for a further two miles and selected a suitable ford for crossing the Clyde, which was dirty because of the north-west weather in the locality for about three days. The width of the stream was about 40ft. They linked their ice axes and proceded to cross abreast. When they got into the water they found the boulders were bigger than they expected and the river was swift. About half-way across the force of the current swept them off their feet and they were carried down stream. Before attempting the crossing they took the usual precaution of unfastening the waist-belt of their packs but retained the arm straps in position. They did not discard their packs because they did not consider that they were in any danger Witness regained his feet after being carried down for 20 yards, and made back to the bank they had left. Barker and Pattle made for the other side, Pattle getting across safely after being carried onto a bar. Barker reached the same bar only lower down than Pattle, and stood up in the water which was knee deep at that point. He then proceeded to cross the remainder of the stream and walked into a hole or deeper water and was again carried off his feet. He was swept against a bluff and was carried down the main stream. Witness saw that his mate was in difficulty and he followed him down the river, which was flowing more swiftly than witness could run. After witness had proceeded 200 yards, he could not see Barker, who was completely under water, but the black sleeping bag attached to the top of Barker's pack was visible. Witness could not get any closer than 60 yards to the body, which was carried down for about a mile and was swept onto a shingle bar. The pack was still attached to Barker's shoulders. Artificial Respiration Tried Witness carried Barker to the bank and tried artificial respiration for about 20 minutes, but there was no sign of life. The water was very cold, coming direct from glaciers. Pattle could not proceed down the other bank so crossed the river again and hurried as fast as it was possible to assist. Deceased's pack was full of water and was about twice as as its original weight. Pattle and Barker were more experienced than witness. Pattle and he went to Erewhon station and got pack-horses to take the body back to the station. In reply to the coroner, Kelly said the Canterbury Mountaineering Club had no rules or regulations governing a trip such as that undertaken. Replying to Mr H. L. Barker, witness said that as Cloudy Peak was not an ice peak and as they did not expect the river to be high, they did not take a rope. No mention was made of a rope being used or being necessary. They made no enquiries at Erewhon concerning the state of the river, as the weather * had been settled. Previous Crossings Made Corroborative evidence was given by John Charlesfield Pattle, clerk, of Ashburton, who added that when he was carried off his feet he slipped his pack off his shoulders. With the pack floating in front of him, he worked his way across the stream and discarded his pack. Barker was struggling to regain his feet about 10 yards down stream. He s!ipped and witness lost sight of him. Witness found difficulty in his second crossing. He could not offer any suggestions for better precautions in the' circumstances. It might have been safer to have put one man on the end of a rope to'see if he could swim across. "I have previously crossed ,he Clyde on many occasions, twice at the same point, without any difficulty after taking the precaution of linkl ing ice-axes, but.it was not as high

on those occasions as on Christmas Day," said witness. Continuing. Pattle said he was the most experienced of the three. Barker started mountaineering about April last. They had not considered the possibility of the Clyde river being high. In reply to the coroner, witness said they had no rope but usually carried one if the climbing was likely to be dangerous. To Mr Barker, witness said he saw Mr T. S. Johnstone, owner of Erewhon, but did not tell him they were attempting the crossing of the Clyde river. Mr Johnstone knew they were going to cross the Lawrence river. The coroner complimented Kelly and Pattle on the clarity of their evidence, and said that he was of the opinion that, they did all that was possible to save the life of their comrade. He expressed the sympathy of the district with Mr and Mrs Barker in the tragic death of their son.