ENTOMBED IN MINE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19929, 24 April 1928, Page 11

ENTOMBED IN MINE.

THREE COLLIERY OFFICIALS. EXPLOSION NEAR BRISBANE. (Received April 23, 8.40 p.m.) BRISBANE, April 23. An explosion at the Redbank Colliery, near Brisbane, entombed three men, Messrs. J. P. Lestrange, managing-director of the property, G, Howells. deputymanager, and J. Marsteller, a member of the staff. To-day was a holiday at the mine, and the three men descended early in the morning on a tour of inspection. They had not been below long when a terrific explosion occurred, and pieces of the pit-head apparatus were hurled high into the air. When hundreds of rescuers arrived on the scene, they found the explosion had blown up one of the cages and wrecked the working gear of the other.

A miners' rescue brigade, after two hours' work, improvised means of descending the shaft. By that time many hundreds of people had arrived at the pithead and watched the three volunteers descend.

The latest advices state that the searchers have succeeded in descending the shaft, but no hope is Held out for the entombed men. The mine is a very small one, and once the rescuers reach the bottom the search should not take long, as there is only one tunnel. Mr. Lestrange is ono of the most prominent men in the West Moreton district. He has been connected with mining all his life. ONE BODY RECOVERED. RESCUE PARTY'S HEROIC WORK. (Received Arril 21, 1.15 a.m.) BRISBANE, April 23. The rescue party reached tho bottom of the shaft which was cleared, and then they commenced digging away tho debris in tho tunnel. They had succeeded in reaching within 100 yds. of the entombed men when the air gave out, tho air control apparatus having been blown to pieces in tho explosion. When oxygen cylinders had been received below the rescuers continued their efforts and recovered Mr. Lestrange's body. Apparently ho had been killed instantaneously. The explosion was so terrific that crockery in houses a mile from tho mine was thrown to the floor.