HUTT EXPLOSION

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2132, 25 April 1914, Page 7

HUTT EXPLOSION

MANY THEORIES

A THREE-SIDED INQUIRY

CONFLICTING VIEWS

PROCEEDINGS TO CONTINUE TO-DAY.

Tho inquiry into the deaths of the seven victims of the Upper Hutt fire explosion was continued for >tho sixth dav Yesterday, before the District Coroner"( Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M.) The victims wero: Constable D. Mahonoy,' Mr. J. Comeskey. latei postmaster at' Upper Hutt; W. Flynn, railway guard; G.'Taylor, railway porter; J. W. Vivian, shop-assistant to Messrs. Bengo and Pratt; E. Polling, v a lad. of :18 years; and Michael Toohey, bridge contractor. Chief Dotectivo Broberg conducted, the case for tho Crown; Mr. C B. Morison, K.C., with Mr. HO'Leary, appeared for Messrs.' Benge and Pratt, in whose store the fire occurred: Mr. T. M. Wilford appeared for Mrs. • Comeskey, Mrs. Mahoney, and Mrs. Flynn, widows of three of tho deceased, and for the relatives of s J.. W. Vivian, 13. Polling, and G. W. Taylor; Mr.'T. Young, with Mr. E. M. Sladden, watched tlie case in tho interests of the New Zealand Acetylene Co., and the Heat, ; Lightj.'and Supplies 'Co., Ltd.; and Mr. H. E. Evans represented tho Guardian Assurance Co.', in which office Messrs. Bongo and Pratt's risk was held. Mr. Morison first called, Mr. Samuel Hill, J.P., Government valuer, Upper Hutt, who said that _he was about 3 loot off' the hotel main entrance when tho explosion occurred. Ho measured tho distance from- whore he stood to the spot ho estimated as tho centre of the explosion, which was somewhere in tho vicinity of,the chimney of the grocery department. When the debris foil 1 after tho explosion a verandah post camo down within two feet ' of where he stood, about 87 feet away. The chimney was .at the back of the main store. When the explosion came the whole building seemed to open out and collapso; from ino centre. It was not only one room that fell. All the windows on'the ground floor of the hotel were smashed, but' hot all tho windows of' tho balcony. Tho damage was greatest on tho lower part of the north end of. tho hotel. To Chief Detective Broberg: Be saw no holds in the hotel below the level of'the balcony. Witness marked a plan , for Mr. Young showing where he l saw the smoko first appear, and afterwards the firo coming out. The marked spot was'on tho south side of the top floor, east of the centre of tho uppor story. "Thero . was nobody in the street when he first saw the smoke,/but in the' quarter of a.-vhonr which elapsed beforo tho James appeared; many persons gathered.

Faots v. Theories. To Mr. Morison: As far as ha could judge the centre of explosion was at tho back part of the building, At this stage Mr. Morison- said that he had heard that, the police had further .ovidonce, as to fact, and asked that .it should be called before he continued. . Chief Detective Broberg replied that he ; ,had evidence.?to .vrob'ut any,'-theories put forwardnbjrr Profe'ssor'-Eakt&fifeld. The professor had listened to a good deal .of the evidence, • and was-in . a position to put forward theories. Hoi personally, had' set up facts; 'and Mr. Morison . had called witnesses to attempt to'.rebut any theories put forward by him, "and "now objected-, to the same-.course'being taken with regard to his . theories. . Mr.. Young: There is an attempt to P u r Jj acetylene gas'oii its trial. The Coroner' decided- to hear the conelusion of Professor Easterfield's evidence, and the professor again went into tho; witness-box. With regard to the evidence of one witness, who said ho saw a blue flash, he stated that if a mixture of acetylene ignited in its non-explosive part, a blue flame would rapidly travel to the centre of the matter.. A blue flash would immediately precede the explosion, so closely that it might be indistinguishable' in point' ot timo.Air vacuums were set up by euch an explosion, causing an inward suction for a time. Tho fact that glass from windows was carried across the street would suggest that the explosion was proceeding down the street. • Chief-Detective Broberg: Would vibration carry any of the broken windows from the hotel balcony to the top of another balcony?—"l could conceive of it doing so." In what portion of the ceiling of tho grocery department do . you think the explosion' was?—"l was under the impression that the whole ceiling came down at onco." Y You can't say what portion of the ceiling?—"l can't say definitely. From tho evidence 'of the location of the dead men, it might have been the centre, or the south side." Tho evidence indicated that the explosion took place nearly over the spot where, Mahoney, Flynn, and Taylor were, in the corner of the grocery department, but that required modification. * It had occurred in a gas explosion that Ihoso well inside a room, near to tho walls, had escaped unhurt, while thoso nearest the windows had suffered badly. , Ho was referring to coal gas explosions, but would not be surprised at any explosion having the same cffect. He had never heard of an acetylono explosion which acted in'that way. He could not say it would apply to a gelignite explosion. The explanation, he had always heard, was tliat in a coal gas explosion people were most hurt in the direction in which the explosion mot the. least resistance. The evidence of tho present. explosion certainly pointed to tho fact that the explosion was nearer:the south-east corner than to the north-west corner.

If a Cartridge .was Farmed. The Chief-Detective - questioned the witness regarding his theories that 20ft. of gas could cause an explosion if a cartridge was formed between the ceiling ana tie floor of the roof above, or gathered togother near tho ceiling of tho lower room. Asked could ho suggest which was tho more likely occurrence, tho witness said that there was no' evidence as to tho position of tho gas-pipes. Thoro was ouly evidence of one pipe.. Mr. Benge's cvidenco did not conclusively show where the pipes were, so that there might have been a pipe between the floors. If all tho pipes were' bolow the ceiling tho cartridge could still have formed between the coiling anti floor above. Some of that gas will diffuse into the neighbouring partitions. - Tho Coroner: You assume that this was going on a long time?— I "Twenty minutes would make it very dangerous." Chief-Detectivo Broberg: That deponds on the quantity of the gas?— "Yes." If tho pipes were below tie ceiling, would the gas go up?—"lt would tend to go up, being lighter than air. It would go through every crack." Then it would go through the cracks of the floor abovo? —"No. Those cracks in a-store are usually sealed up with dirt." And.not tho cracks of tbe ceiling?— "No, certainly not." Tho. Coroner: Not in a store twenty years old?—" No." Assuming only Bft. could get into the building, would that cause an explo-

sion?—"With Bft. I would havo my doubts." The Chief-Detective: Supposing an explosion of gas accumulated under the coiling, , how much would bo nccessary for tno result, as at tho Hutt? —"I could not say. _ , . No idea?—" Under certain conditions 20ft. would have don© that damage." Don't you think the ovidenco of the damage done suggests that the explosion was in tho upper floor of tho building?—" No." , Would you suggest anywhere where tho explosion took placo?—"No. Tho whole of tho circumstances aro so uncertain that it is impossiblo to say where, tho oontro of explosion was."

Leakage of cas Pipes. ' To the Coroner: Whon assuming a leakage in the gas pipes ho assumed they were started, as tne result of tho firo, and wore not prosont at 10 o'clock. Strains in a ceiling through firo wore known to cause leaks in gaß pipes. : To the Chief-Detective: He suggested that if a firo was in the lean-to at the back of the main building, it could cause a strain in the main building, which would cause a leakage in the pipes,'.probably at tho joint. Assuming that acetylene was the cause of the explosion at Upper Hut what feature is in doubt?—'There'is tho doubt as to whether the acetylene, was thero in sufficient quantity." You have quoted a number of gas explosions, can you say the quantity of gas in them?—" No." . You 1 have spoken of dust explosions. What dust was there? —"Smoko is an explosive dust." Then wo can take it that thero can bo an explosion at any firo?—"Smoke explosions havo frequently occurred." Mr. Wilford: It is quite impossible for any layman to question these experts. I suggest that Dr. Maclaurin questions Professor Easterfield, and Professor Easterfield is given the opportunity to cross-examine Dr. Maclaurin. Tho Coroner: "You know quite as well as I do that expert witnesses can make statements, ana of course these might apply under' certain circumstances. We have a lot of theoretical evidence." '/ Professor Easterfield quoted Dugald Clark, tho internal combustion authority, to show that acetylene and air, in tho proportion of 1 to 12, exploded in a closed vessel, developed a pressure of from 180 to 1901b. por square inch.

An Expert's Position, Mr. Young: I suppose you were employed by Mr. Morison to evolve some theory to absolve Benge and Pratt?— "No, I was not. I was instructed to investigate the case and advise Mr. Korison." •And you have been bringing forward theories to show • that the ' explosion could have resulted from acetylene?— "Yes. I advanced theories." In favour of' acetylene?—" Yes." ■ Did you look about for other theories?—" Yes." - Gelignite?—" Yes." _ . , Do you know anything about gelignite?—" Not very much." Do you say the effects are inconsistent with a gelignite explosion?—"l don't say they are not consistent with gelignite." Do you think that if gelignite was on tho first floor it would account for all that' happened?—"l think ; so. if the quantity was sufficiently large.' _ I understand your first theory is that a pipe may have become fractured during the fire?—"Yqs." A fracture before the fire would not be sufficient? —"Yes, it would." And in a fracture an hour before the firo. would not there be. : a strong smell of acetylene?— ■ Further, .witness said that anywhere, : within ■ half, am hqnr,. anr explosive mixture would gather- fromra ■ lehk in'.the. ceiling. It would remain longer than a coal-gas mixture. A draught would probably have; cleared any acetylene from the room, assuming that it was not actually in the ceiling. It ia a fact that acetylene gas will diffuse itself downwards ?—"That is a fact with any gas," • Your theory' is that the floor above the ceiling was airtight, so as to keep the gas in?—"l didn't say air-tight. I said practically . closed with dirt, so that effusion would be extremely slow." If the boards of the floor were so far apart that you could see through them, would your theory bo exploded?—"lt would not be exploded, but would become much moTe improbable." So if Mr. Hazelwood says that the .boards were bo far. apart that you could see into tho snop below, you would have to get soino other theory i 1 — "Not altogether.". ; You don't abandon' your theory?— "It would still be possible." , You don't think that the explosior would flash back to tho generator ?- "No.". If the explosion was caused by acetylene, a flame would be thrown somewhere?—" Yes. \n explosion is the rapid burning of the gas."

Gelignite or Acetylene? And you would expect the objects in tho explosion to show signs of burning ? —"Anything in tho explosion region. Would you expect to see signs of firo on the bodies found in the snopr ; "I could not tell you that." _ Would you expect to see their heads blown off?—"lt is consistent with both gelignite and acetylene explosions.' You have told me about certain experiments. Were they with acetylene and air, or acetylene and osygen?— "Acetylene and oxygen." That would cause a much more explosive mixture? —"Very much." Witness thought that 10ft. of gas would have been sufficient to wreck the building, under favourable conditions. He could not tell whether it would have been sufficient to throw the wreckage the distance it was thrown. To Mr. Morison: Acetylene gas explosions, under different circumstances, might be three, four, or five times as violent as explosions of coal gas. This concludcd the professor's evidence. - , , Chief Defective Brobcrg said that he intended to call evidence in- regard to the theories put forward hy Professor Easterfield. Ho intended to call the plumber to show where the.pipes were. He also intended to call Mr. Hazelwood to 6how that there were holes in the floor above, which would have allowed the gass to escape. Mr.. Morison said that the matter was entirely in the hands of the Coroner, but the police seemed to have directed their efforts to convicting his clients, and showing that the exnlosion must, have been caused by gelignite, and not by acetylene. ■ Tho Coroner: The inquiry seems to •ha a three-sided one. X think the plumber shouid be called. Mr. Morison: It seems to bo a onesided inquiry. The Coroner: I don't agreo with you at all. Mr. Morison. . William J. Goodwin, plumber, Upper Hutt, stated that he put in tho gas generator at Benge and Pratt's. He only , fixed the supply to the pipes which were already in the building, and- which were usod when the supply camo from Hazclwood's-

Creaking of Pipes. Chns John B. Norwood, manager of tho fitting department of tho Wellington Gas Company, called by Mr. Morison, said that, a soldered joint in a gas pipe would become broken in warping of timbers. A fire in a part of a building would, under certain circumstances, cause the joint to pull out. The Chief-Detectivo called James A. Hazelwootl, storekeeper, Upper Hutt, who said that ho occupied tho premises .destroyed for about eight years. Ho left them about four yoars ago.' /With his wifo and family, ho used to live in tho rooms above tho grocery department. ,Tho boards ran north by, souths

and when ho left there was no ceiling in tho grocery department. During tho time ho occupied the promises ho did not store explosives. Ho kept blasting-powder in the bake oven at tho back of the premises. When ho wont to his new premises, cilongsklo, ho supplied tho old store .with aeotyleno gas from tho generator bohind his now promises. When Bengo and Pratt took over tho promises lio cut tho supply off, and tlio connecting-pipe waa plugged up. Tho Chief-Detective: Can you give mo any idea as to the flooring upstairs when you left? —"You could see the light through tho boards of tho southi cast room." You aro sure tbcro was no ceiling then, to tho grocery department?— "No. 'It might havo been altered since." to Mr. Morison: He had kept geligllito sinco ho went into his new premises, but it was stored in his stables. To the Coroner: During his term of occupancy of the premises no pipes wore concealed by a ceiling. Mr. Morison: "I understand tho ceiling was put over all tho lower part by Mr. Wilkie, aftor Mr. Hazelwood left."'

Continuing, witness said that ho thought tho pipes across tho ceiling wero galvanised iron. To Mr. Morison: He did not know arhat readjustment was made in tho pipes when the coiling was put on. Wm. J. Wilkie, settler, tipper Hntt, said that he had owned Bengo and Pratt's premises. Ho occupied them for about 18 months, leaving about four years ago. Beforo Bengo and Pratt went in he had a match-lining put on to the roof of tho grocery department. No felt was used in making tho coiling. The gas pipes wore below tho ceiling. Tho ago of the building was 37 years, and the upstairs floor was the same age. Some of the boards wero open and warped. If gas got between thfe ceiling, tho stato of the.floor would allow it to escape to tho upper room. Chief-Detective Broberg: Wore tho pipes all below the coiling?—" Yes." At this stage of the caso tho Coroner proposed an adjournment.

Counsel Want to Address Court. Mr. Young asked was it proposed to allow addresses.. The Coroner said it was not the usual case. Mr. Young: You see, if wo are on our trial we want to call evidence to show that it was not acetylene which caused the explosion. If addresses were to be allowed they would have to put forward a complete defence." Mr. Morison said that the inquiry necessarily placed his clients in a much more serious position than anyone else. There was no complaint against the Acetylene Gas Company, The position of Mr. Young's clients and his clients were incomparable. Surely Mr. Young could not join in what seemed the general attack-on Bengo and Pratt. Ho felt that, right or wrongly, the police had started out to evolve one hypothesis and ono alone—that gelignito caused the explosion. Tho Coroner: The two theories are before tho Court. Mr. Morison held that the Acetylene Company were not concerned to show, that it was not an acetylono explosion. It was no reflection on thom. The Coroner said that the position he took up was that if Mr. Young wanted to submit evidence ho oould do K><by putting it first to the Chief-Detec-tive. As to addresses, he would hear them, if they were not more than half an hour in length. Mr. Young: I would want more than half an hour. I would moro ' likely need half a day. Tho inquest was adjourned, and tho '.remaining evidence will be proceeded with this morning at 10 o'clock, :