‘Insufficient evidence’ for charge on fatality

Press, 19 May 1982, Page 5

‘Insufficient evidence’ for charge on fatality

Police inquiries into the death of a railway worker, struck by a train near Halswell a year ago, had revealed insufficient evidence to charge anyone with criminal neglect, the Christchurch Coroners Court was told yesterday. Detective Senior-Sergeant Robert Allan Meikle was giving evidence before the Coroner (Mr N. G. Hattaway) at the inquest into the death of Donald Arthur McLintock, who died on May 15, 1981, aged 48, when be was struck by a north-bound train on the main trunk line near the Halswell Junction Road railway crossing. The Coroner said that it was an unfortunate death which must have brought considerable stress to the driver of the train. “But I am satisfied that it was just a very unfortunate accident,” the Coroner said.

In response to a question from the Coroner, Mr Meikle said that under the Railways Staff Regulations of 1956,

there was an obligation on the ganger in charge of the railway gang .to place detonators on the railway line.

“Inquiries by me have revealed insufficient evidence on which to charge anyone with criminal neglect arising from this mishap, there being a number of other contributing factors,” Mr Meikle said. At the time of his death, Mr McLintock had been working on the railway track with Bruce Duncan Meeehin, who was in charge of the two-man working party, he said.

In his evidence Mr Meeehin told the court that he and the deceased had been checking the northbound track near the railway crossing and they had found that some of the railway line sleepers needed repacking. “At intervals, I rang Railway Control and checked train movements. I was told that goods train 636 coming north was due at 10 a.m. so

we kept a watch for it,” he said.

“We were working just east of Halswell Junction Road railway crossing with the Pionjar vibrator — a machine that .makes a lot of noise, a bit like a rock drill. We wore ear muffs all the time.

“I saw train 636 coming and we moved out of the way. We then returned to packing the sleepers.

“At 11 a.m. Control told me that a special 856 train would be due later in the morning, coming from Darfield. So I went and put four detonators further up on the north-bound track to warn of the approaching train.

“Then we had trouble with the vibrator. It wouldn’t go. I realised we’d be there for dinner,' so I went and took the detonators off. “When I returned, we managed to get the vibrator going again. There were only three sleepers to repack so I decided to carry on as it

would only take a few minutes. “I thought we would hear the warning bells from the crossing, which was only 50 feet away. “At 11.45 a.m., Mr McLintock was using the vibrator beside a sleeper and he was facing north, away from any approaching north-bound train. “I was five steps away, getting a gauge for the track. I turned around to return with the gauge and heard a train whistle. I looked up and saw a train bearing down on us. “I could tell by its speed that it would hit him if he did not get out of the way. I shouted to him, and started towards him, but I could see no chance of getting to him before the train,” Mr Meeehin said.

Mr McLintock had his back to the approaching train and was wearing ear muffs. He wouldn’t have known what had hit him. The impact had thrown him forward on to a waggon in a nearby siding, he said. Mr Raymond Anthony Crowe, a train driver, said he had been travelling on the north -bound line at 50 km/h. “About 200 yards before the crossing, my mate drew my attention to workmen ahead, working close to the line,” he said. “I sounded the whistle and applied the brakes. Then I. just hung on to the whistle,” Mr Crowe said. “There had been no detonators on the line to warn of workmen ahead.” Senior-Sergeant Leonard Macdonald Simmonds, of the

- Hornby Police Station, said that detonators were used on 'the railway line to warn trains that there were workmen or other dangers on the line. Two sets of detonators on the line meant “slow down,” he said. Two sets of detonators had been found 100 metres from where the men were working. But the detonators had not been on the line — they were lying between the lines and had not been run over or set off, he said.

“The train driver, and his crew had little warning before the accident without the detonators, as visibility is restricted by the right-hand curve in the railway line approaching Halswell Junction Road,” Mr Simmonds said.