DOUBLE FATALITY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22413, 8 May 1936, Page 14

DOUBLE FATALITY

TWO NEW ZEALANDERS RECENT CASE IN ENGLAND MECHANICAL FAULT IN CAR [from our own correspondent] By Air Mail LONDON, April 18 A verdict of accidental death was returned at the inquest at Grantham on April 14 concerning the deaths of the two New Zealand medical students, Messrs. William James Gray, aged 22, and Herbert Masson Gilray, aged 20. They were killed in a motor accident at Little Ponton, near Grantham, on April 12. Mr. Gray was a son of Mr. and Mrs. Gray, of Napier, and Mr. Gilray was a son of Dr. T. M. Gilray, also of Napier. Both men were students at Edinburgh University, and had been spending a few days' holiday travelling in a saloon car which Mr. Gray was driving. It was stated in evidence that when descending a hill at Little Ponton the car suddenly swerved to the right, mounted the grass verge, collided with a telegraph pole, passed through the then struck a tree and overturned. Mr. Gray was killed instantly and Mr. Gilray died two hours after admission to tho Grantham Hospital. A motor engineer stated that on examining tho car he found a mechanical fault in the steering apparatus. When going down hill, with a bend on tho right and a steep camber of the road against the driver, the steering was atfected and the driver lost control.

The jury and the coroner expressed deep sympathy with the relatives in New Zealand of the two young men.