PEDESTRIAN'S DEATH

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23883, 10 August 1939, Page 6

PEDESTRIAN'S DEATH

KNOCKED DOWN BY TAXI INQUEST CONCLUDED The inquest'into the death of Dunstan Horace North, a married man, aged 52, living at 39 Clarendon street, who died in the Dunedin Hospital, on July 2,3, after having been knocked, down by a taxi at the corner of Hope and Princes streets on July 15, was concluded before Mr H. W. Bundle, S.M., yesterday. Sergeant Hogg conducted proceedings, Mr J. G. Warrington appeared for the deceased's widow and dependants, and Mr P. S. Anderson represented the driver of the taxi Constable A. Mackie said that, at 8.35 p.m. on July 15 he was called to the scene of the accident at the corner of Hope and Princes streets. He found the deceased lying on the footpath; and' a taxi was standing nearby, He examined the. roadway and found a pair of. spectacles lying on the;tram rails a short distance frohi; where the accident apparently /occurred. He tested the brakes and lights "of "the taxi and found them to be in good working order. About 30 yardsfrom the scene of the accident there was an authorised pedestrian Crossing. , • Tp Mr Anderson, witness said that the intersection where the accident occurred was a bad one, as it was the junction of Manor place, Hope street, Princes street, and Manor street. At night. time there were several dark spots 6n the intersection, and he was under the, impression that the deceased was wearing dark' clothing. -It was a' very. dark night and the bituinen was wet. The driver of the taxi every assistance after the accident. v :''■■';, "'•■' Dr H. E. M, Williams, house 'surgeon sit the Dunedin, Hospital,'* said that' at 1040 pjn. on July 15 he saw the deceased, jWho was then in an unconscious: condition; and : was suffering from severe hdlad injuries and. a fractured leg. He . died on July 23. He was not rational mentally" after he recovered consciousness, and on the sixth day after his admission to hospital he contracted a pneumonic condition and subsequently sank! and died. In witness's opinion, death, was due to shock following on the deceased receiving a, fractured leg and head injuries, accentuated by his .pulmonary condition. - To Mr: Andurson, witness said that he saw ho signs of liquor, on the deceased. iThe chief injury- was to the: head,-which was consistent with his having received a severe knock on the head. Lillian Constance Mellon, a-.jnar-ried daughter of the deceased* said that on July 15 her father visitel her home at Macandrew Bay, and returned to the city by the bus at 7 p.m, He was perfectly sober when he caught the bus, and had! had no liquor' at witness's place. He was wearing the spectacles which were found oh the roadway near the scene of the accident.' • To Mr Warrington witness said that her father was wearing a navy suit, a grey overcoat, and a navy blue hat. Francis Falconer Ward*.the driver of the taxi,'said he was employed by the; White Star Taxi Company end had been driving a taxi since July, 1938,- He had not previously been involved in an accident. The car he was driving had been examined at the Dunedin City Corporation testing station on July 7, and had subsequently had some adjustments made to the lights and brakes. Shortly after 8 p.m. on July 15 he was driving north along Princes street south, on- his correct side, at about 20 to 22 miles an hour. When opposite the corner of Hope street a man appeared suddenly in front of the car about 10 feet/from the right-hand mudguard. The car struck him and. witness applied his brakes and brought the car; to a stop. He found the deceased lying across the tramlines about a foot behind the rear of the carj It was drizzling heayily at the time of the accidents. To Mr Anderson witness said that «t the time of the accident he had two women passengers in the back seat of-the taxi. The driving ditions were very bad..; His windscreen wiper was working and he was keeping a good lookout. He, applied the brakes hard and stopped the car in its own length. , The headlights were full on at the time. The> deceased appeared to be wearing a dark overcoat. Witness had good' yision through his windscreen, but had no opportunity of avoiding the accident. . _ To Mr Warrington witness said that if he had seen the deceased earlier he would have Men able to aVoicl the accident. His first impression was that the deceased had been running, as he appeared so suddenly in front of the car. John Alexander Brown, a motor mechanic, gave evidence of having repaired the brakes of the taxi and adjusted the lights, on the day prior to the accident. To Mr Anderson he said that the brakes on the car were exceptionally good and at speeds up to 25 miles an hour could bring it to a stop in its own length without skidding. The lights were also exceptionally bright. Feador Eric Larsen, a tram conductor, said he arrived at the scene of; the accident shortly after it had occurred, and he assisted to carry the deceased to the footpath. It had been raining and the streets were wet, visibility being very bad. After reviewing the evidence the coroner said that the accident occurred on an evening when conditions were very bad. There was no suggestion that the taxi was being driven at anything but a reasonable sneed, and the evidence was that that it was pulled, up as expeditiously as possible. On the evidence the car was being driven carefully, and there was no reason to assume that there were any pedestrians about at the time. He could only find that the deceased died in the Dunedin Hospital on July 23 from shock, suffered from head and leg injuries caused by his being acci; dentally knocked down by a taxi driven by Francis Falconer Ward in Princes street south on the evening of July 15.