ENGINE DERAILED.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 4 June 1927, Page 9

ENGINE DERAILED.

ACCIDENT AT TIMARU. NO ONE INJURED. (BY TELEGRAPH—PRESS ASSOCIATION.) TIMARU, June 4. With a fearful crash at 11.40 a.m. to-day, the express train from Christchurch came off the fine a few yards from the norfn signal box of the Timaru station. The engine slewed right around and caxne to earth almost at right angles to the track. Four carriages were derailed, but by an extremely lucky chance the passengers on the train, numbering several bundle Is, escaped. No one wins injured. Both driver and fireman had a miraculous escape, getting off with nothing worse than a severe shaking. The fine was badly torn up for many yards, and owing to the position of the engine, lying across four sets of tracks, traffic bo'-h northward and southward will probably be subject to a prolonged delay, if not to a total stoppage, to-day until the iyrcckage can be cleared and the lines restored. The engine presented a terrible, picture, lying on its side with its wheels in the air and huge jets of steam hissing from every outlet. Coal from the tender which also had completely left the track, was strewn about the line with debris of tangled steel and woodwork from the following carriages liberally scattered about. The tender was telescoped into the engine', the cab of which had its roof and sides hopelessly wrecked. Water from the tender poured out upon the tracks in great volume, the tender having been .stove in. Solid steel rails had been broken and smashed to pieces and heavy sleepers torn from their beds in a wonderful fashion, so great .must 'have been the-driving power of the engine wheels, as the engine tore its 1 way along the track for many yards from the point of derailmant to where, it finally swung around and crashed to earth. The eitgi lie finally stopped when it® bogey wheels had smashed completely the wooden .picket fence separating; the railway tracks, from the road which fronts on to Timaru harbour. The driver of the train was Mr R. J. Stone, of Linwood, Christchurch, and he stuck to his post with great presence of mind and did what little was in the power of a human to arrest the terrifying onward rush of the train and its’ precious cargo of human lives. As the engine hit the ground he scrambled out of the cabin on to the track, escaping with a severe shaking and sundry bruises to his back. His comoanion, Fireman J. Lok, of Morris street. Christchurch, a second or two before the crash, jumped clear of the cabin, luckily choosing the side away from' that on which the engine came to earth. Had he jumped on the other side, he certainly would not have been alive to-day.