INQUEST TO BE HELD ON APRIL 4
Victims Of Kopuawhara Tragedy TWO BODIES NOT FOUND By Telegraph—Press Association. Wairoa, March 25. An inquest ou those who lost their lives on the morning of February 19 when No. 4 railway construction camp at Kopuawhara was overwhelmed by a wall of water and 20 men and a young woman were swept to their deaths, will be held in Wairoa on Monday, April 4. The inquest will be held by the district coroner, Mr. V. E. Winter. Sergeant J. Mclntosh, Hastings, who has been in charge of inquiries throughout, will watch the proceedings on behalf of the police. It is not known how many witnesses will be called, but it is anticipated that the inquiry will be a lengthy one. So far the bodies of 19 of the victims have been recovered. Since the disaster a continual search has been made for the others but without success. In the case of the 19 bodies recovered evidence of identification has already been heard, and it is proposed in the meantime to continue the inquest on these. It is not known yet what the procedure will be in the case of those whose bodies have not been recovered.
Relatives of the victims, who are scattered in many parts of the Dominion, are being communicated with to enable them to be present or represented at the inquest should they desire.
The bodies of the following victims of the disaster whose bodies have been recovered: —Martha Quinn (Gibsorne), William Auld (Gisborne), George Barnarich (Waipukurau), Frederick I. C. Clark (Opotiki), David Barclay (Auckland), Thomas Hall (Gisborne), John Pender (Auckland), F. G. Fountain (Te Puke), George H. Davis (Gisborne), Robert Johnston (Wairoa), Hira Waaka Raupunga (Wairoa), Thomas Tracey (Wairoa), William Dunn (Christchurch), Frank William Fry (Gisborne), Robert Edward Smith (Gisborne), Jack Kelliher (Wellington), Robert Edwin Halford (Woodville), Edward McGivern (Gisborne), and Hugh Sloan (Gisborne). Those of R. Douglas (Gisborne) and Ivan Markotich have not been found.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19380326.2.27
Bibliographic details
Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 154, 26 March 1938, Page 7
Word Count
327INQUEST TO BE HELD ON APRIL 4 Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 154, 26 March 1938, Page 7
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Dominion. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Log in