MOTOR CAR ACCIDENT.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 79, 27 December 1907, Page 5

MOTOR CAR ACCIDENT.

.: ;., A- RIVER: . ' :' 4:;; : YOUNG. -RTOMAN BROWNED. . ■..(bt,-teleoeaph—press aseociation.) ,- ■ ' im. i. v,- ! - : -"lnverpargill,- December 27. .The holidays .wore'marred to some extent ' try;._a .motor aeoident;-which , occurred on Chnstmas- Day hoar Wallacetown,■ eight miles from Invorcargill, to a motor party of three ladies and two childron, driven by Mr. R.;J. Cuhiming; 'They , wore returning from p trip to Itiverton, when at the turn il^. In i : *? ,the bridge Mr. ; dimming that the, car was; not taking- the turn properly, and.tb avoid crashing into the bridge, he turned;, off,', intending' to run the car parallel with the river bank. He- did not, •however, turn;sufficiently,',with the result that the car shot straight' over' an ; eightfoot bank, and landed squaroly oh'its wheels m the stream. Fortunately the water was not deep where the; car landed, nnd the . occupants, who had jumped or fallen clear of the car,, scrambled to it, with the exception of one child and a young lady, Miss Daisy Lumsdon, who floated down tho stream to deep.water. Mr. Ctrmming 'waded in and rescued his child, but, as he was uhablo to • -ewinv,, he. could not reach the young lady, „ who , gradually sank nnd was drowned in Bight, of the .party. The body of tho unfortunate girl, who was 21 years of ago, was , recovered two hours later. Hor veil being twisted round her face suggests that it obBcured.'her; sight when tho accident occurred, causing, her to struggle towards deep inBtoad of shallow water. Tlie car was afterwards hoisted by a derrick out of tho stream , dimming had bought it only a fortnight ego, and this was his first long venturo in it without a tutor. At the inquest to-day'the jury found that deceased met her. death by drowning as the result of _ a motor accident due to the want of oxpenonco by the driver. They added that the Approach was one of peculiar -difficulty; ami that. Mr. dimming did everything in his power to avort the accident. In tho ndor the jury drew tho attention of tho Buthonties to tho necessity of permission to •drive motor cars,being restricted to-certi-ficated drivers, and alsfr pointed out to tbo County Council that the approach to the bridge should be mndo safer.