RAILWAY TRAGEDY

Evening Star, Issue 22383, 6 July 1936, Page 8

RAILWAY TRAGEDY

OLD LADY KILLED RUN OVER BY TWO TRAINS The Mosgiel railway station was the scene of a shocking accident on Saturday afternoon, when Mrs Jessie Renton, a widow, 80 years of age, who lived at East Taieri, fell under the wheels of a train and was killed instantaneously. A few minutes later another train passed over the body, which was terribly mutilated. An inquest was opened at Mosgiel this morning before Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M. The body of the deceased was identified by a nephew, who said that her sight was not too good.

Elizabeth Guthrie Peters, a widow, told the court that she had spent the afternoon with the deceased and her sister, who lived in Gladstone road, East Taieri. The deceased accompanied Mrs Peters to the 5.15 train for Dunedin, and, after bidding her goodbye in the carriage, immediately left the train, which then moved off. Mrs Peters was not aware that an accident had occurred.

■ George Alexander M‘Kay, a horse trainer, of Wingatui, said that he entered this carnage just before the train left and saw the deceased walking along the aisle towards the door, which he opened for her. He saw her, through the glass panel, trying to get off. She stepped off in the opposite direction to which the train was going, and he then heard her cry out and fall back beneath the two carriages. Witness came out q| the carriage and saw her hat on the platform. He called out to two people on the roadway, but did not think that they heard him. Witness “ got a shock ” and went back into the carriage and sat down. When the train was approaching Wingatui the guard came through, and witness notified him of, the accident. He considered that the train would be travelling at between 10 and 15 miles an hour when the deceased stepped off. The gate was not closed when he entered the carriage. Thomas Condon, a railway clerk at Mosgiel, said that he was notified of the accident at 6.21 from the signal box at Mosgiel, which had received a message from Wingatui. The DunedinClinton train was then standing at the platform, and under the guard’s van he found the remains of a body. The Dunedin train left at 5.10, and the Clinton train _ arrived at 5.181. The gates were invariably shut on the departure of trains. After Constable Phillips had given evidence, the inquest was adjourned until Wednesday to enable the guard to be called.