KILLED BY A FALLING TREE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13699, 16 March 1908, Page 5

KILLED BY A FALLING TREE.

[lit TELEGRAPH. —own CORRESPONDENT.]

GlSflOflNE, Saturday. A hush-felling accident occurred away back at Tahora early yesterday morning, when a young man named Michael Cruickshank was fatally injured. A party of live bush men were engaged on a bush contract on Messrs. Halbert and Carroll's Tc Wiru property. and the accident took place at six o'clock, when the first tree of the day was being felled. The men started work in the usual custom with a drive, a number of trees being partially cut, and then another fallen on them, forcing the trees to the ground. The deceased had been working on a heavy tawa, 4ft in thickness, when it came down unexpectedly, pinning the unfortunate man to the ground, and crushing his body' severely. Death must have been instantaneous. Cruickshank's mate also had a narrow escape, being struck by a branch of the same tree.

The work of extricating the body and carrying it out over three miles of extremely rough country by the four mates of deceased was difficult. A pack-horse was subsequently procured, but the difficulties of the task may be understood from the fact that it took 22 hours to traverse 28 miles. An inquest was held at Patutahi this afternoon, when a verdict of accidental death was returned.