STORING BENZINE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 2 October 1924, Page 7

STORING BENZINE.

TRANSPORT COMPANY FINED. Magistrate’s Court this morning to the law governing the storage of benzine, when the General Transport Co. was lined for storing dangerous goods on unlicensed, premises. H enry saicl that °» the h^° VSt^ e, \ Toc ; ker 'and Mull an, m, r ' the borough inspector a lu -n - vlslted Premises ,p„ the South Road just over the borough boundary, and there found 88 cases of benzine,, which, it- was stated, had keen stored there over night. Mr. Bayley, for the defendant comsaid that the benzine had been brougnt down-.from New Plymouth by motor lorry and stored late at nffiht on the premises occupied by a. man named McGregor. It was too late to take the benzine to a dump, and as the lorry had to do other work the load was stacked inside McGregor’s ri-ont gate and was removed the following morning The benzine had been stacked nr the . open and'at a- distance ot oO feet from McGregor’s house, and the company had not been aware that tiiey had committed al breach. The magistrate pointed out that the aw provided for the confiscation of the benzme, but Sergeant Henry said that this had not been carried out, a« the maniager ■of the company had been seen during the luncheon‘.hour on the ■following day, and he had undertaken to have the goods removed right away. -Llie Sergeant said that the company had previously been warned iu connection with the , storing ol benzine in the town. It appeared to him that a- lot of the trouble was caused by the drivers working all hours of lihe day and night. The magistrate said that that brought into prominence the question of lorries travelling at night without tail lights. It had been previously stated in the court that lorry drivers carrying benzine at night could not light the tail lamps on tlieir lorries for fear of igniting the benziue. it all pojilted to the fact that for tlie safety ol the public and the drivers themselves benzine should be carted in daylight. • ■ Mr - Bayley asked that the matter be. treated leniently. The magistrate said lie would take into consideration the fact that the benzine was only stored overnight and in the open. He had had five or six eases of a similar nature in Wanganui, and, there the minimum fine had been £5. The Act provided for a fine of £IOO and the confiscation of tlie benzine, hut as most of the danger aimed at iu the Act was absent in the present case lie would impose a fine of £5, and 7s court costs. A similar charge was made against G. McGregor as occupier of the premises, but Mr. Bayley stated that on tlie occasion in question Mc-Gregor had absent from home between T o’clock in tlie morning until midnight, and he had given no authority to allow tlis benzine to he stored on his property. On hearing evidence the magistrate held that defendant was not guilty of the offence, and dismissed the info lunation. , . .