Guard Gives Evidence At Railway Inquiry

Greymouth Evening Star, 6 April 1948, Page 5

Guard Gives Evidence At Railway Inquiry

(P.A.) BLENHEIM, This Day. When thb-inquiry into the Seddon rail wreck continued this afternoon, Roy Parmenter, guard of the wrecked train, said he had had 29 vears’ service and had been stationed at Picton for 18 months (having been transferred there from Greymouth). When the train had left Picton on its tonnage was 213. The train left Picton at 9.52 a.m. according to his records, but he knew now that the Picton station records showed that it left at 9.50 a.m. The train was due to cross another train at Koromiko, but this was changed just before the train left Picton, so that the crossing would take place at Tuamarina. At Tuamarina No. 104 took the main line and the engine crews changed. “Excessive Speed” Witness said that the speed of the train approaching the Blenheim level crossing was excessive. He would put it down as between 40 and 45 m.p.h. “For. the speed we were approaching the station, the stop under the circumstances was an excellent one,” said Parmenter. “1 heard the wheels skidding on the rails and the guard’s van stopped with part of it still at the down grade of the platform at the southern end. I was not concerned about where the engine stopped at that moment. I was anxious to get the driver’s eye before any passengers attempted to alight from the train or attempted to get on the train. “To the best of my knowledge there were no passengers in the first carriage when it left Blenheim. When I found out that it was the drivei’s first time on the express, I consider - ed he had done a good job in negotiating the Dashwood bank. The conditions on the bank that morning were very good. At the time I did not know that the driver had not beer, x ■ the section before.” Witness said he had spoken to the driver at Blenheim and told him there was a goods train to pass at Vernon and that after that No. 104 was a main liner all the way. He had had experience of drivers overrunning stations. It had not concerned him. “Not Concerned” “The speed from the top of Dashwood did not concern me,” said witness, adding that the driver had manipulated a bad turn at Awatere bridge well. No stop had been made at Vernon. The goods train was in the siding and No. 104 was signalled v through. The driver had made a satisfactory stop at Seddon. Witness said that by his watch it was 11.25 when the train arrived and 11.29 when it left Seddon. “From Seddon onwards, to the time of the crash, I was in a standing position in the van, sorting correspondence, and was not looking out from the windows,” said witness.