Another boulder nears home

Press, 31 January 1984, Page 1

Another boulder nears home

A Heathcote orchardist and his family are concerned about their safety after the latest of several boulders to be dislodged by work on the liquefied petroleum gas pipeline came within 20 metres of their home last evening. The boulder, which was about 60cm in diameter, was one of three dislodged after contractors working up the hill from Mr Peter McGrail’s Horotane Valley Road property used explosives to blast through rock. The two smaller boulders were stopped by trees, but the largest rolled through the orchard and came to rest several metres from where Mr McGrail’s son, Peter and another man were working.

“When we heard the explosion we just ran like hell over to the house, where we thought we’d be safe. We watched the boulders come down the hill," said Mr McGrail, jun. Earlier this month, digging work on the pipeline dislodged a much larger boulder, which came to rest about 200 metres from the McGrails’ house. The company contracted to lay the pipeline, McConnell Dowell, Ltd, has since erected a wire fence on either side of the work site. Compensation was also offered to Mr McGrail for damage the boulder had caused to his fruit trees. A slower of small stones also fell on the property a week ago, but the family did not notice any damage. After the rock fall Mr McGrail, jun., spoke to workers at the site, but the person who had been blasting had left. The workers continued digging as soon as Mr McGrail left, he said. The boulder which stopped nearest the house contained a drilled hole about scm in diameter. Mr McGrail, sen., said he and his family were afraid a similar fall might hurt somebody. It was the middle of the harvesting season, and on Sunday pickers had been working in an area the boulder had passed through last evening. The boulder, which fell through the orchard soon after 6 p.m., yesterday, destroyed six fruit trees and damaged several others. Mr McGrail said he planned to seek legal action and attempt to have the work stopped. The police visited Mr McGrail’s property after the fall last evening. A spokesman said inquiries would be made. A spokesman from McConnell Dowell, Ltd, could not be reached for comment last evening.