RAILWAYMAN'S TERRIBLE ORDEAL.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 26 September 1927, Page 7

RAILWAYMAN'S TERRIBLE ORDEAL.

KNOCKED DOWN BY VAN AND SERIOUSLY INJURED.

MIRACULOUS ESCAPE FROM DEATH (Palmerston Times.) During the late hours of Friday night a serious accident, which might easily have had fatal consequences, occurred in the railway shunting yards off Cook Street crossing, and, as a result of his terrihle experience, Richaxd Henry Campbell, aged 32 years, a married man, residing in Lyndhurst Street, was admitted to the Public Hospital suffering from & badly crushed foot, shock and abrasions. It was found necessary to amputate the foot which was already nearly severed, wit Mr. Campbell, although suffering considerably from shock, is now progressing favourably. A . porter at the railway station, Mr. J. K. Kelly, going on duty at a quarter to twelve on Friday night heard groans coming from the neighbourhood of some rolling stock standing in the shunting yards and stopped to listen but, tus he hoard nothing more, and there was quite a lot of noise in the yards at the time h e concluded that he had been deceived and proceeded to hia work. Som c threequarters of an hour later a passo,r-by heard groans and investigated with a pocket torch. He found a man badly injured caught under a guard's van connected to three cars which wore standing on the track known as the "old loop."

The signalman was informed, also Mr. Martin Furlong, the night foreman who crawled under the van in order to extricate th G sufferer. The unfortunate man's clothing was caught in one of the wheel's and he was doubled up across the line under the bogey of the van. His left foot wa s . nearly severed from the leg and his right ankle was also injured though to what extent is not yet ascertainable. When found, his head was on the line almos t under the wheel of the ear and it was stated that, had the van moved any further, his head might have been severed from his body. Judging by the marks between the rails he had been dragged a distance of some thirty-five feet under the car before the van came to rest.

The thre G carriages connected to the van had all been standing in the yards since 3 p.m. on Friday afternoon when they were taken off the Wairarapa train. At; some time during Friday night some extra rolling stock was "bumped off" and, coming down the loop struck the stationary van and carriages. Apparently Campbell had stopped at the end of the van to light a cigarette and was struck by the van which had been suddenly propeled by the impact of the rolling stock. He was evidently thrown under the van and dragged along, his clothing becoming entangled in the wheel.

When found Campbell was quite conscious although suffering acute pain from his injuries, and the shock and exposure. Mr. Furlong' acted with' commendable promptitude and summoned a doctor and an ambulance so that within half an hour of the discovery the injured man was in the hospital. Campbell, who was off duty at the time, is the chief painter for the Railway Department in Palmerston North and was in charge of operations at the station where he had been for about a month. He was keeping his gear in one of five painters' huts on the rails near the Cook street crossing and wa s going to his hut f °r his overalls before going on duty again. It is quite a customary thing for railway employees to cross the yard during th e night and had not Mr. Campbell stopped behind the van just at the the shunted wagons hit the other end, he would never have been injured.