Extraordinary Drowning Case.

Hastings Standard, Issue 370, 12 July 1897, Page 4

Extraordinary Drowning Case.

A telegram from Moree, in the Sydney papers, says : —A fatal drowning accident of an extraordinary character occurred last night. Three men, named Foster, Thelwell and Hunt, went to East Moree bore for a bath, as the water is believed by many to have medicinal properties. Numbers of people go there, principally at night time, and get under the water which spurts from the bore and falls around, forming a pool, which, in the deepest place, measures about 2ft., and which is only about 10ft in diameter. From the evidence taken at the inquest it appears that Foster remained-in the water after his two companions came out. A moment or two later his mates missed him, and as he could not be seen, and did not answer to his name, Thelwill went into the water to look for him, but could not find him. A short time after another search was made, when the body was found in 18in. or 20in. of water. Dr. Magill, in his medical testimony, expressed the opinion that death resulted from suffocation after fainting; through a lengthy immersion in the water which comes from the bore outlet pipe at a temperature of HGdeg. It is considered that water at such a high temperature is calculated to cause auyone to faint if remaining in it long. The jury returned a verdict to the effect that death resulted from accidental drowning ; but as a number or children bathe in the bore in daytime, and large numbers of persons go there at night, the jury recommended that the Government should provide more supervision for protection of life.