TWO LINESMEN KILLED

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 September 1946, Page 2

TWO LINESMEN KILLED

FATAL ELECTRIC SHOCK AT HDRORATA WIRE TOUCHES POWER LINE (P.A.) CHRISTCHURCH, Sept. 16. Two linesmen, employed by the Post and Telegraph Department, were killed by an electric shock when a telephone line they were lidridling touched a high-tension power line near the Hdrorata township about 2.20 o’clock this afternoon. They were: . Frank Methven, aged 21, son of Mr and Mrs F. Methven, of Halswell. John Leslie Bell, aged ,32, whose mother lives at St. Hilda, Victoria, Australia. A. third member of the line gang also received a shock, but recovered without injury. He was: Percival Edward Walton, married, of 43 Hood street, New Brighton. The accident occurred about half a mile from Hororata. A gang of six linesmen were removing telephone wires which had been “dead” for some months." Walton, it was stated by a department official, was winding the wire on to a drum, while Methven and Bel! were pulling the wire from the overhead line. The wire was accidentally flicked upwards and touched a high tension power line. The three men received the shock simultaneously, but Walton (who wds holding the drum) .was only dazed. One other member of the gang was standing by watching the operations, but the other two were some distance from the line. Artificial respiration was applied immediately, and medical assistance was called. Artificial respiration was continued for two hours, and also m the ambulance which took the two men into Christchurch. Both men were standing on wet ground when the wire made contact with the power line. Walton received treatment at the Hororata Hotel and apparently did not suffer from any serious aftereffect of the electric shock.