DUNOLLIE FATALITY

Greymouth Evening Star, 10 September 1924, Page 3

DUNOLLIE FATALITY

INQUEST AND VERDICT.

According to the verdict arrived at by the Coroner, Mr. W. Meldrum, after hearing the evidence “at the inquest held at Dunollie yesterday Albert Manderson, the co-operative miner who met his death in the mine of Manderson and Party on Friday afternoon, died from shock and asphyxia, caused by the pressure of a fall of coal and stone.

Senior-Sergeant P. J. McCarthy appeared for the Police and the Mines Department was represented by Mr. C. J. Strongman, Inspector of Mines. William George Griffiths, a member of the party employed in the mine, said that at 2.30 on Friday afternoon he and deceased were engaged in timbering the mine. After pitting up a set he was talking to deceased when he heard a bump, and then a fall of coal. The coal covered Manderson and put out the lights in the safety lamps. Witness called out to Manderson, but received no reply and he then called over Shaw, another miner. They took a lamp to the spot and witness holding it over the debris called out to Manderson, -Can you see that?” “Yes,” came the reply “Take this stone off me!” A number of men set to- work to clear the debris. They worked away for a long time, and deceased once said, “It’s no good —take some of this stuff off me. It is crushing the life out of me.” Owing to the fact that the debris was continually falling it was nearly two hours before the body was extricated. Manderson was then dead. Prior to the accident there appeared to be nothing dangerous about the state of the roof. It was partly of stone and. partly of coal and had been passed by the Inspector of Mines (Mr. C. J. Strongman). He attributed the accident to - * earth movements. There was no way in which Manderson’s life could have been saved. William Shaw gave corroborative evidence. Peter Manderson, manager of the mine and brother of the deceased, gave evidence of identification. He stated fhat as manager of the mine he inspected it every day, and on the day of the accident had made two inspections, one at 7.30 a.m. and another at 11 a.m. The mine, in which seven men were working was in good order. He went to the assistance of the men who were helping to clear the debris from the body of the deceased. His brother was alive for about an hour and once when appealing to the men to get the coal off him, said he was smothered. The deceased was a practical miner and had been engaged at the mine for 12 months up to the time of the accident. Dr. Alan Bruce Roy, medical practitioner, of Runanga, said that he arrived at the mine while efforts were being made to extricate the body. Deceased was still partly under the fall. When the body was finally extricated, at about 4.30, witness found life to be extinct. There were no signs of major injury, but on the forehead and on the bridge of the nose there were groups of small contusions, and extensive bruises on other parts of the body. There were no signs of fracture, but a moderate degree of cyanosis. In his opinion death resulted from shock and asphyxia due to pressure.

Ballantyne Armstrong, mine manager residing at Dunollie, said that Oliver James Davis, mine manager at the State Mine, and himself had inspected the mine where deceased had been injured and they made a report to the effect that the ground which was being re-timbered was of a very faulty nature. In their opinion some movement had taken place from the lower side, causing the timber to be disarranged and a further movement twisted the timber, knocked out the supporting props or legs and let the roof fall, pinning deceased to the floor.

The Coroner found that deceased came to his death from shock and asphyxia, the result of a heavy fall of coal and stone on him while he was engaged in working in Manderson and Party’s mine at Dunollie on September 5, and that every care had been taken to make the workings safe, and no blame for the accident was attachable to anyone.