RIVER FATALITY

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 87, 11 January 1928, Page 6

RIVER FATALITY

ACCIDENTAL DROWNING

VERDICT AT INQUEST Palmerston North, January 10. A verdict of accidental drowning was delivered by the Palmerston North Coroner, Mr. A. J. Graham, at an inquest held at Ashhurst this morning as to the death of Dennis Crowley, a carrier, of Ashhurst, who was drowned while bathing in the Pohangina River yesterday afternoon. Evidence was given by Ronald Fraser Mac Kay, dairv factory manager at Ashhurst, that at about 2.30 in the afternoon of the day of the fatality deceased, accompanied by his wife and family, called for him at the factory to go swimming in the Pohangina River. On arrival there Mrs. Crowley and the children remained by the smaller stream while witness and deceased proceeded further up the river where the water was deeper, about two chains away from the rest of the party. Witness went into the deep water and deceased remained in |a place where the depth was not great. When they had been bathing for about 15 minutes witness, who was then about half a chain away from deceased, heard the latter call "Mac,” and turned round to see him in deep water and apparently slowly sinking. Before witness could reach deceased he had disappeared. “I tried to reach, his body,” Mac Kay proceeded, “but I am 1 not a good swimmer and I could do nothing. I went and told Mrs. Crowlev and she obtained assistance from Mr. Hanlon, and together we managed to get the body to the shore.” Witness added that he did not know whether deceased could swim or not. He had not complained of any illness when he entered the water. William Hanlon, a railway employee at the Manawatu Gorge, stated that when Mrs. Crowley told him of the accident he assisted' Mac Kay to recover the body. Artificial respiration was tried but it was of no avail. Deceased’s face was purple when he was brought out of the water, and this, witness thought, seemed to indicate that he had suffered heart failure.

Corroborative evidence was given by Mrs. Crowley and Constable Fisher, the latter witness also giving it as his opinion that deceased had suffered from a heart attack.

The Coroner returned a verdict as already stated.