THE GLENTUNNEL FATALITY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXX, Issue 14977, 24 April 1909, Page 10

THE GLENTUNNEL FATALITY.

A QUESTION OF AMBULANCE FACILITIES. STATEMENT BY THE RAILWAY DEPARTMENT. An inquest was held at. the Hospital last evening, before Mr H. \V. Bishop, District Coroner, and a jury of six, on the body of John Doyle, who died on Thursday as the result of injuries sustained by being run over by a dray near Glentunnel, on Monday. The Coroner briefly recounted : the facts of the case for the information of the jury, and said that certain statements had been made in regard to the circumstances under which the deceased was conveyed to the Hospital, and the suggestion had arisen out. of .theso statements that possibly the manner ■ , in which the deceased was conveyed to the hospital was a factor in causing his death. He knew nothing of the case except what he had 6oen in that , morning's "Lyttelton Times," but the statements, in the newspaper should be inquired into. . Dr A. Stephens, assistant house surgeon ,at Christchurch Hospital, said that the deceased was taken into the Hospital on Monday, April 19, at about 7.30 p.m., and said he had been run over, by a spring-cart. His* condition became no worse till "Wednesday when ho developed symptoms of peritonitis. He grew rapidly , worse,' and died on* Thursday night at about 11 p.m. His symptoms were quite consistent with Buch an accident as he said he had sustained. There were no external marks of violence on 1 the body. His death would not be accelerated by the treatment which that -morning's ''Lyttelton Times" alleged he had been subjected to. His pain would be increased by such a journey. In such an accident, patient • , would be subjected to a great deal of pain when lying still, and any move- ' mest • would increase the pain. . James Longstaff, saddler, of Glentunnel, gave evidence identifying the deceased. He said that on Monday, at about 1 p.m., the deceased called at his shop and asked for a horse-collar he had left there, and put the collar in the spring-dray he was driving. The horse was slightly startled and gave a little jump, the deceased spoke to the horse and then turned to witness to speak to him. While witness and deceased were talking the horse bolted off. The deceased jumped forward and tried to seize the reins, which were lying on the near' side of the dray, across the shafts. He seemed to miss the reins and caught the crupper. Witness then sprang forward and caught the reins himself, but was over. When he got to his feet he saw the deceased just dropping off the shaft. The off-side wheel passed over the small of the deceased's back. The deceased was carried to Mr Barlow s ' house. He seemed to be stunned. Mr Barlow telegraphed to Darfield for the doctor,' and the doctor arrived about 3.30 p.m. in his motor-car. Witness went to lAsyle's place-and brought Mrs Doyle down to Mr Barlow's house. The doctor took the deceased to Glentunnel station in his motor-car. At Glentunnel the deceased was put aboard the train for Christchurch, and propped up on a cushion in a first-class carriage, as there were no ambulance appliances at Glentunnel station. Mrs Doyle and another lady travelled to Christchurch with the deceased. The train left Glentunnel about 4;10 p.m. John William Anstiss, postmaster at Glentunnel, said that he saw the deceased underneath the wheel of the dray. He corroborated the evidence of the previous witness as to the manner in which the accident took place. Witness went to the deceased's assistance, and: found the reins still attached to the dray. The deceased was carried from th» motor-car to the train on a wheelbarrow. He looked as if he was suffering pain, but did not speak or groan. He was made as comfortable is was possible under the circumstances In the railway oarriage. The deceased was about thirty-five years of age. J. L. Morgan, acting railway traffic Inspector, made a statement on behalf of the Railway Department. He said that the statements which had been made in the ',' Lyttelton Times" could not be allowed to pass without a certain amount of contradiction, as they •were liable to leave the impression on the minds of the public that the officers of the Railway Department were earei less' or callous in cases of this kind. The first notice that any railway official had of the case was ,when the deceased was helped into the train at Glentunnel. At Darfield the guard had to go to the front of the train to attend to shunting operations, while the stationmaster and the guard of the main line brain had to transfer luggage and parcels from one line to the other. The Darfield stationmaster understood tha the deceased's friends were looking after him, when he gave the signal for the train to proceed. He stopped the train before it had got out of the station, in order to make sure that Doyle was aboard, and' he then saw Mrs Doyle, who told him that her husband had not been taken into the train. I The stationmaster and guard Holland ' then carried Doyle to a first-class carriage, and laid him at ■ full length on a long seat, with a cushion to make him as comfortable as possible.. Doyle was only charged a second-class fare. On arrival at Addington, one of' the ladies who was with Doyle asked the stationmaster if the ambulance waggon had arrived. Tho stationmaster rang tip the Rink stables, and asked if the ' waggon had left, and on receiving the information that it had, it was arranged that Doyle should bo taken on to Christchurch station to await its arrival. A minute after the departure of the train for Christchurch the ambulance waggon turned up, and the signalman, acting under instructions, told the man in charge to go on to Christchurch. On the arrival of the train at Christchurch platform*, foreman M'Loan noticed a man in one of the carriages, apparently sick, and asked if he could be of any assistance. He was told that he could not, and that the ambulance waggon would be waited for. Foreman M'Lean gave instructions to the. shunters that the train was not to be moved until the injured man was attended to. Porter Vernell opened the door of the carriage and brought in a stretcher, and six men were availablo to carry Doyle out. Shunter Evans moved a car that ■was lying near, away, so that tho injured man could be carried out comfortably. Nearly all the railway men attended ambulance classes, and Shunter Evans had a first-class certificate. Every care and attention was given to Doyle, unasked. The railway staff was only too willing to assist in cases of this kind, and if anyone had only telephoned to tho stationmaster at Whitecliffs or Springfield, a stretcher would have been sent to Glentunnel for Doylo. Stretchers were kept at all terminal stations, and at most junction stations. Doyle was made quito as comfortable in the firstclass carriage as he would have been ** on an ambulance stretcher. The Coroner said that ho thought ' there was no suggestion of carelessness in the matter of attention to the deceased while he was on the train but nobody seemed to take the trouble to • Bec that he was removed from the r Whitecliffs train to the mam line f ''Mr Morgan said that Mrs Doyle was

very excited, and did not think of.asking anyone to shift hor husband. Mr Bishop said that Mrs Doyle's evidence would bo taken.

Sergeant 'Johnston produced-a statement, signed by tho deceased just before his death, in which Doyle gave a brief account of the accident, his account being the same as that of the witnesses examined at tho inquest, and stated that there was no blame attachable to anyone. "1 feel very faint," tho statement concluded, " but I hope to recover." , > -

Mr Bishop said that the statement satisfactorily cleared up matters solar as tho accident was concerned. Tho question of. the prompt attendance of tho ambulance, and of whether there was want of care in attending to the deceased at Darfield Junction, were matters which must be left for further inquiry. Tho evidence of the widow and her friend would be valuable in clearing up that point. Under ordinary circumstances it would not have been necessary for him to have tho assistance of a jury, but what had appeared in tho • Lyttelton Times" that morning was practically n. challenge to him to exhaust all possible avenues of inquiry, so that if any blame was due, it could be put upon the. right shoulders. The result of an inquiry under such curcumstances was designed to make people more careful in future, if carelessness was proved, and te ensure that those suffering seriously as the result of injuries should receive every possible care, and attention whilst being removed from outlying districts to a hospital. It was his duty, therefore, to see that every possible facility was given to secure as much information as was possible regarding' the circumstances attending tho death of the deceased. The allegations which had been made were more properly question's for a jury, and if the. jury thought proner to add a rider to their verdict, that would probably be attended to and given effect to. The'inqu'jst would be adjourned till Monday, at 5 p.m., at the Magistrate's Court, to allow Mrs Doyle's evidence to; be taken.