Opinions About Danger Of Flagons Vary

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30943, 27 December 1965, Page 3

Opinions About Danger Of Flagons Vary

New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, December 26. Opinions vary about the damage that may be done when the corks fly off beer flagons.

Many medical practitioners condemn flagons and say not enough publicity is given to the injuries than can cause.

But the medical statistics show there has been an average of only nine admissions to hospitals yearly in the whole of New Zealand since 1959 for eye injuries caused by corks, bungs and bottle tops.

In the Wellington district about 50.000 flagons are sold each week.

This was a very small accident rate in proportion to the number of flagons sold, said Dr. G. A. Q. Lennane, the assistant director of the Division of Health. Cases Reported Dr. Lennane said the Health Department always reported in “Health” magazine cases of injuries caused by flying corks. In most cases it was just carelessness on the part of the people uncorking the flagons, he said. However, a Northland eye surgeon, Mr B. Bowden, of Whangarei, paints a very different picture. He condemns flagons, and feels the publicity associated with a recent case in Christchurch, in which a young man sued a publican after a flagon-cork accident, in which he lost the sight of one eye. had not sufficiently alerted the public to the danger. A jury disallowed a claim for £6OOO against the lessees of the hotel from which the flagon was bought. Peculiar To N.Z. “The use of beer flagons is peculiar to New Zealand, and the dangers arise because they hold beer under pressure when they are not properly designed for this,” Mr Bowden said. “Eye injuries from flying champagne corks have long been known to eye surgeons, but what makes the beer flagons particularly dangerous is that the dangerous cork is hidden under an innocent looking stopper. “The wiring of the champagne cork advertises that the cork is held on a leash." Mr Bowden said an injury of sufficient severity to cause bleeding within an eye could

produce in even 20 years’ time a cataract which would impair vision. “The Health Department is aware of the danger, but the only action it has taken was to publish a warning about the corks in the magazine “Health” (May, 1963), which has a limited circulation,” Mr Bowden said. Polythene inserts in place of corks had been suggested, but these apparently let the beer go flat. “It is likely that any polythene stopper sufficiently tight to keep the beer in good condition would be as dangerous as a cork,” he said. Screw Stopper “It is not necessary to invest in new methods of stoppering, as the standard method for cider and many brands of beer in the United Kingdom use a screw topper with a rubber washer. “This cannot fly out as the pressure is released before the stopper is fully unscrewed. “This method could easily be adopted for flagons,” Mr Bowden said. A spokesman for the New Zealand Glass Manufacturing Company Pty., Ltd., in Auckland, said the company did not manufacture flagons particularly for the beer trade. Because of the construction of the flagon there would be manufacturing difficulties in making threads in them to take screw stoppers, he said. “Major Problem” A senior surgeon in the eye department of the Wellington Hospital also opposes the use of flagons. “They pose a very real danger and a major problem,” he said. It was impossible to judge the seriousness of the situation on statistics. Many cases were not diagnosed as coming from corks or flagons exploding, he said. Cases of bruising and haemorrhaging were admitted and the reason for the cause of the admission was not included in statistics. Six Every Year “We have a case every two or three weeks at the Wellington Hospital related to damage from flying corks,” he said. “In Wellington there are about six serious cases every year.” He did not think the reason was carelessness. “It is often the innocent bystander who is hit by the cork,” he said. In many cases the wife and children were the innocent parties. Glass Fragments Both the surgeon and Dr. Bowden criticised the manufacturers of the flagons. Both the surgeon and Mr cases in which a flagon had exploded and fragments of glass had damaged the eye. The surgeon said manufacturers were ignoring the problem because they did not want to go to the additional expense of making a flagon [which would be suitable for [holding beer. “We have given a warning [to the glass manufacturers [and they are well aware of [the danger,” he said.