RATANA TRAGEDY

Evening Post, Volume CXXV, Issue 146, 23 June 1938, Page 14

RATANA TRAGEDY

DRIVER'S STORY «j —— VVI CRASH AT 25 M.P.H. £ en pt ATTENTION DIVERTED ™ The Ratana inquiry yesterday after- w ioon disposed of the cross-examina- w aon of the Department's expert wit- g« lesses and commenced the evidence af the driver, E. Percival, who stated that the speed had been reduced to le 215 miles per hour before the crash. « The Board of Inquiry consists of Sir aj Francis Frazer (chairman) and Messrs. h; H. L. Cole and F. W. Furkert. d< Mr. K. F. O'Leary. K.C.. with Mr. « F. W. Aickin, railway law officer, are f( representing the Railway Department. r( and Mr. G. G. Watson the Engine b Drivers' Association and the driver 01 j, the train, Mr. E. Percival. Mr. F. J. - u Foot is appearing for the relatives of the late Mrs. E. S. Lewis and Mrs. Esme Webb, two of the passengers, and Mr N T. Gillespie for the relatives of h the late Mrs. Hazel D. Tullock, another h passenger on the train. si When the inquiry resumed after the i luncheon adjournment P. R. Angus, l the locomotive, superintendent of the c New Zealand Railways, was still being s cross-examined. i< When he gave his previous evidence, v he said, he quoted the rule as given in n the rule book regarding eyesight tests. E The test given in the rule book was not the test given nowadays, a summary of which showed that the system, r both for visual acuity and colour vision, was very severe. The test for t vision was obtained with Snellen s j test types, and for colour sense with r Stilling's and Ishihara's plates, and f aiso the Eldridge Green lantern. For , the test for colour blindness figures } made up of dots of various shades of l colour are shown .to the candidate, ( and he is required to -pick up certain forms of a particular colour included ( in groups of colour., The dots are ] like confetti, and the candidate has to pick them out individually. The lantern test is carried out for the purpose of ascertaining by means of a , small spot of colour at a short dis- , tance whether the men can correctly , identify colour signals at a long dis- , tance. The eyesight test is very . rigorous, and if there is a change in , a man's vision the test is taken at , shorter intervals than the two cases specified. ' . Referring to a record of the repairs , which had been booked to this .particular engine since 1937, which concluded the day before the accident with a complaint "too much space between engine and tender; engine riding very rough when travelling fast,'' Mr. Watson drew attention to the number of times over a period when complaints of rough riding in this engine's cab had been made, by different drivers, and asked the witness if they were not abnormal. "No," replied the witness, remarking that no dangers arose from the draw bar condition. DRIVER'S EVIDENCE. The driver of the engine, Edward Clifton Percival, was then called. The greatest consideration was extended to this witness, who was still suffering from the injuries he had re- , ceived, by the board, the chairman I askings him to say whenever he felt 1 that he would like a seat to say so, \ and the customary adjournments for • a rest for the typists, whose work has I been onerous during the inquiry, were I more than observed. » The driver was the board's witness. | The witness said he was a first- » grade engine-driver. He had been 24 I hours off duty before being booked J on for the excursion trip at 8.40 p.m. k He was quite familiar with the line J between Wellington and Palmerston . North, but though he had driven twice ' from Palmerston North to Marton ' last year, it was eight years since he had been over the section between

Marton and Wanganui. He raised ni objections to taking "W. 4" on tha section. REPAIRS UNDONE. On the way to Palmerston North h noticed that some of the repairs h had booked a fortnight previously hai not been done. He had asked tha the engine should be lifted at th back end, and this was not done. Th tendency without the repairs migli be for the cab bogie boxes to run ho He noticed it had not been done whe he was oiling up . the engine. Th bearings, however, did not run ho They stopped at the north end c Koputaroa station for water, but was found that there was insufficier water in the tank for them, and the thus lost some seven minutes there. FIREMAN NEW TO RUN. His mate the fireman not fam liar with the road from Palmersto North. It was necessary for him i driver to watch and instruct him i to the tablet, the side the signals wei on when he should shut off, and whe to' open up again. They, struc patches of fog about Greatford, bi he did not think there was any tc approaching Marton. The tank wi filled at Marton. The guard told hi: there was a passenger for Fordell, bi witness said they could not stop ther It was clear weather leaving Martc and they had a good run to the nor' side of Bonny Glen. He shut off thei and they drifted into Turakina, whe they passed a south-bound goo* train. They ran into Turakina about 30 miles. They climbed Tur kina bank at about 20 miles an hoi There was no rain or fog on tl Turakina bank. REDUCING SPEED. They went down the straight about 40 miles an hour. At Rata; station they shut off steam. 1 pointed out the Ratana temple to t fireman, but they could only see t tops of the towers, the body of t building being partly obscured by light low fog. and only the main oi line being visible. Shutting off that slight down grade made ve little difference in the speed. "NOTHING BUT FOG." Have you any recollection of seei the speed board.or curve-radius "bos at approximately 130 miles 70 chains' No, 1 have no recollection. Was there some reason why you < not see them?— Yes, previous to comi within half-a mile of Ratana I said my mate, "There is a speed restrict: somewhere here;, keep your e skinned." The fog at this time v coming up very thick, and it was that account that I advised my m to look out. The fog was so thicl _ could not see more than a chain "" front. The speed would have been duced to 37 or 38 miles per hour. Thinking the speed restriction \ close he made an application of brake and reduced the speed of train down to about 25 miles an he and when that speed was attained released the brake, and within a secc the accident happened. What could you see at the time : put on the brake?— Nothing but fo( ATTENTION DIVERTED? You said you could see objects o about a chain away. Do you thin! you had been looking at the rac board you could have seen it?—l co have seen the radius board at a i tance of about a chain. The reaso I did not see it was perhaps because

?ntion may have been diverted in ing some instruction to the firefe felt a bump, was thrown off his t, and twisted right round. The nark in his statement that he aped the emergency brake would be ong. He remembered being thrown ind by the cab into such a position it he could only have released the lergency brake, but could not have t it on. Something then hit him the head and he lost consciousness. Sxamining his injuries in hospital he ind that the palm of his left hand is the only part of that arm not ilded. Seated at the window it mid have been his left hand he >uld have used to put on the emerncy brake. INJURIES RECEIVED. He received a blow on the head, the 't arm was completely scalded expt for the centre of the hand, and th legs were scalded from the kles to above the knees. The right ind had been "dead" since the accint He was still an out-patient of e Wellington Hospital. Even now he as unable to concentrate on anything r a length of time. He could not ad a magazine story, right through, it had to get up and walk about in itween. His condition was, however, lproving. EXPERIENCE OF DRIVER. The witness said he started driving 1914, and between 1914 and 1918 he !d been driving intermittently, but nee then he had driven continuously, e had held a driver's certificate for I years and now held a first-grade Ttificate. Except for smoking on the ation platform (when not on duty), ir which he had been fined ss, there as nothing against him in Departlental records, except "please exlains." t L . Sir Francis: We al' get those. For the last ten years, said the witess, he had been attached to the Welngton depot, and for practically all lat time had been on the Wellingtonalmerston North section. Neither he or the fireman Ind any liquor bejre the trip, nor did they partake of ny at any stage during the journey. ,t no time while the train was on the un was there anyone in the cab exept himself and the fireman. A man amed Jimmy Wallace brought a cup f coffee into the cab at Paekakanki ut got out of the cab there again. DROVE "GHOST TRAIN." The night express to New Plynouth. referred to amongst drivers as he "ghost train," ran for about three nohths. He drove it on four trips, "hose trips eight years ago were his ast previous trips over the line. The ireman Miller had never been over he Palmerston North-Wanganui line. Vitness, prior to the depression, did i fair amount of night driving from r'aihape, but since then not so much. It was a handicap for the driver to lave a fireman with no knowledge of he road, as the fireman had to be told vhen to have plenty of steam, when o turn it off, which side stations were m. and where to look for signals. FELT WELL TO DRIVE. "You felt no doubt about being able ,o take this train up?'V-No. • "You first heard of the message on ] Wednesday or Thursday?"— Yes. Witness said that he had had a full night's rest on Thursday and dozed n little, late on Friday afternoon, so that he was neither exhausted nor sleepless when he took over the tram. He was a few minutes late leaving Paekakariki owing to having to wait for a passing train, but made it up. He was seven minutes late leaving Palmerston North. With reference to the statement made by the witness Bellows, the witness said he remembered a passenger asking him at Palmerston North if the engine was running hot, and he said no, it was only running warm. Witness had no conversation with the witness Edward Lee at Palmerston North. Witness said he had not whistled thrice for brakes prior to the accident. From what he was told when he was found, he was caught up in wires. He did not whistle for brakes at any Though the witness said that he was ready to carry on for a while, the board decided that he would be the better for a rest, and the' inquiry was adiourned until 10.30 today.