FALL OF A THUNDERBOLT.

Otago Witness, Issue 2861, 13 January 1909, Page 38

FALL OF A THUNDERBOLT.

SENSATIONAL EXPERIENCE. The Press Association sends the following account of the sensational experience which befell a train near Kaiapoi on Thursday evening, and which was briefly described by our own correspondent : — On Thursday evening, in continuance of the downpour of rain in Christchurch, a thunderstorm broke in the vicinity of West Eyreton and Cust. About 7.45 p.m. a thunderbolt fell within two chains of the West Eyreton Railway Station, close to the Kaiapoi-Bennetts train. Before reaching the ground it burst with a loud report, and spiead a shower of coloured sparks, some of which set fire to a gorse fence, although it was raining heavily at the time. The shock of the bursting shook the buildings all round. The enginedriver states that a ball of fire came j directly towards the engine, which was | travelling at the maximum speed allowed by the regulations, and burst like a bomb | a chain off the locomotive with a deafen- j ing report and a blinding flash. The engine was enveloped in a bluish flame for a second or so, and the machinery momentarily received a check, the wheels and piston clogging, as it were, by the magnetism of the ironwork set up by the electric current. This sudden check was appreciable through the train. The guard in his , van assumed that the brake had been put j down by the driver when the train be- j came enveloped in the electrical fluid. In i a second or two the full head of steam under which the engine was travelling again asseited itself, and caused a slight jerk equally noticeable to the passengers. For a few seconds the fireman was dazed, •. but the driver, who was on the opposite } side of the engine cab, was not affected by the occurrence. It was soon seen the engine and train had escaped unscathed, although 'all on board had received a very i sudden shock, and were thankful that the ! fireball had not come any neaver to them. { The fire in the hedge lighted up as rapidly | as if the green fence had been saturated | with kerosene, and burned as fiercely for j o time as if it had been as dry as tinder, I whereas it had been soaked with the j heavy rain. An investigation was made , as to whether the thunderbolt contained i any solid matter, and it was reported at, i Bennetts next day that some pieces of jagged flint like stone had been picked up. Xone of the officials on the train think this is likely, as in tha explosion of a solid body some of the broken portions must certainly have hit the train, v. lnch included some waegons. two passenger cars, and the guard's van. upon which there are no marks that would suggest that any missile had bec-n discharged at j them. The ground when passed next day , did not appear, so far as could be seen j in parsing, to have been visibly disturbed.