MANGAHAO TRAGEDY

Otago Witness, Issue 3566, 18 July 1922, Page 30

MANGAHAO TRAGEDY

THE CORONER’S VERDICT. SHANNON, July 13. The inquiry into the Man ga b ao tragedy, which occurred on July 3, was resumed to-day before the coroner, Mr Fraser, S.M. Inspector M'Kinnon conducted the proceedings for the police, and Mr C. A. Loughnan appeared for the Public Works Department, Mr Simpson for Mrs Maxweil (the widow of one of the victims), Mr Bergen for the relatives of Bernard Butler, and Mr C. Grayndler for the New Zealand Workers’ Union. Mr F. W. Furkert, chief engineer of the Public Works Department, was also present. John Hurrell, assistant engineer, said be became aware of the fatality at 1.45 on the morning of July 3. He dressed and went to the sub-station, where the men who had been brought out were lying. Resuscitation was being tried. Witness went into the tunnel about five chains, and met the fumes of gas. He knew it would be useless to risk any more livee. When he arrived at the tunnel he saw the fan was not working. When he came out of the tunnel he saw that arrangements were being made to start the fan going as soon as possible. From the time he arrived till the fan started was 45 minutes. The electric fan was run by power from the bottom oamp at Mangaore during the week and stopped at 8 o’clock on Saturday night, when the whole working of the tunnel stopped except the pumping. He had never heard complaints about ventilation. To Mr Simpson: Witness said it was about a quarter to 7 on Sunday evening that the large kerosene engine in the tunnel stopped working. The overseer had informed him of this after the accident. To Mr Bergen, witness, said he heard before that some, men had headaches working in the tunnel. Cross-examined further, witness said it had been the custom for nine months to start the engines on Sunday to cope with the exhaust and the water, so that the men could star! work at midnight. He had been told earlier on Sunday evening t.ha* the kerosene engine had stopped, and that a man had been sent to tell the men to come out and start the fan before going beck. The system of ventilation vrae an electric fan operated at the mouth of the tunnel. The fan was sufficient to carry off all the fumes that went into the ventilation pipe. It drew 4000 feet of air per minute. The discharge of the gas engine would be negligible in this 4000 feet. Herbert Edward Kinzet.t, tunnel foreman, gave evidence that when he went on about midnight he was told that something was wrong. He got a lamp and went into the tunnel. He met Triggs coming out, who said that a lot of men had been gassed inside. Witness went on and found F Birss lying unconscious, and further on Miller, one of the Grahams, and Birss, jun. Miller and Graham appeared to be dead. A rescue party arrived with a truck, and Triggs collapsed, and the others had to retreat. Witness got one body on the truck, and endeavoured to get another on when he collapsed. He knew nothing more till he recovered in the canteen afterwards. To the Coroner: He had known of men having headaches in the tunnel before, but none had been carried out. Arthur Charles Trigg, air compressor attendant at Arapeti, said the power was on wdien he went to work at 7 p.m, on the day of the tragedy. Shortly afterwards the power station informed him it. was going to close down, but not for long. At 8 20 p.m. Butler entered the station and departed. lit the tunnel an hour later Maxwell told witness he was going to the tunnel to find out how the pumps were working. As at 10 o’clock Maxwell had not returned witness went to the mouth of the tunnel, and as he could see no lights, he became uneasy. He w r ent hack to the sub-station, but, being still uneasy, went into the tunnel and tihere met Birss, jun., and the two Grahams. He expressed apprehensions as to Maxwell and Butler, and the three men said they would go and see, and at the same time ascertain the depth of the water. Witness added that he wished they would, as his place was at the sub-station, and he had no right in the tunnel at all. At 11.20 p.m. the men returned a.nd explained that they had gone as far as they could, but could not get into touch with the other two men. Later Miller oamo along, arid on being advised of their fears, entered the tunnel, accompanied by the three men. This was the last witness saw of any of them alive. He (w-it-ness) remained at his post till 11.55 p.m. He then entered the tunnel and came on the first party of men gassed. He gave the alarm and went back with the rescuers. Ernest Hjorth, overseer at Arapeti, said he got to the tunnel at 5 p.m. on Sunday. Maxwell and the others were alongside the auxiliary fan engine, which they started. It stopped owing to air suction valve trouble. They could not get it going again, owing to losing a nut. Witness told Lankshear, one of the men to go into the tunnel and tell the men to come out and start the engine before they went in again. Being tired, witness then went home. He was awakened at 1 a.m. and told that, the men were drowning in the tunnel. He went to the scene and found that three of the men hud been brought out. He telephoned to the power house at Mangaore and was told that the power would be on in a few minutes. He then went into the tunnel. He found fumes there and did not think it advisable to go farther without the fan. Later he went in with the rescue party. Cross-examined : He was aware of the danger from fumes. If was a direction of bis that the men were not to go in singly, lie had had previous experience of gas in the tunnel. An assistant of witness had become giddy and staggered, and had to la; taken out. Witness also be-

came giddy. He reported the matter to Mr Miller, who said he would see into it. Witness told Maxwell to run no risk. Butler had instructions prion- to the accident not to go into the tunnel unless the fan war working. Counsel: Do you think Maxwell was so attached to his duty that he went in despite the danger ? Witness : I have come to that opinion. Witness said he had never heard of men previously being gassed in the tunnc-l only suffering from headaches. To Mr Grayndler: He instructed the men to go in pairs, on account of the discomfort of headaches, losing shift, and fear of some being overcome, not from the fear of gas. Alfred Lankshear said he was sent into the tunnel at 5.30 p.m. to tell the men to come out. He did not know whether anything was said about not going back. Butler and Maxwell knew the fan was not wen-king. Eric Davis, engine fitter, said lie told Maxwell at 7 o’clock that the gas was very thick, and a man would not last five minutes. He bad never had direct instructions not to go into the tunnel alone. Mate Erceg deposed to feeling the effects of gas in the tunnel at 8 o’clock on Sunday morning. Butler and Lankshear were also suffering from the same cause. Joint Cherrie, engineman at Mangaore, said the electric fan was stopped because it had developed a knock. He told Mr Miller he wished to close down, and was later advised he could do so. He was not informed that the auxiliary fan was not working. Alexander Dennie, engineer in charge, said he considered every precaution had been taken all along to minimise danger from gas. He could not comment on the evidence. Regarding the working of the engines, he had had no complaints previously of men gassed or “headachey.” Since the disaster the engine had not been run ning, and the department proposed to procure an additional engine to do the air pumping electrically. It was not proposed to run the tunnel until that had been done, and no more benzine engines would bo used in it. To Mr Louglinan (for the department) : Witness had no reason to suppose that Mr Miller expected clanger, because he requisitioned for a big engine to be installed. Mr Miller never expressed dissatisfaction or anxiety about the plant. To Mr Simpson (for Mrs Maxwell) : A relief engine would have averted the aeeiclen t . To the Coroner: Had witness been at Arapeti after the kerosene fan ceased he would have thought it safer to have benzine engines working, though not for long. He had a petrol engine at Otira without a vent pipe. To Mr Grayndler (the Workers’ Union): The local tunnel was 911 and the Otira 15t„ high. A verdict was returned that the seven men came bv their deaths by carbon monoxide poisoning, caused by the exhaust of the benzine engine used in the tunnel. Tilt: coroner said that the tunnel, not being used during the afternoon and evening of July 2, was not. well enough ventilated for the men to work with safety.