BRIDGE WORK TRAGEDY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19376, 14 July 1937, Page 8

BRIDGE WORK TRAGEDY

TWO MEN DROWNED KNOCKED INTO RIVER (Per Press Association!) DUNEDIN, last night. A fatality occurred at about 1.15 p.m. to-day at the construction works of the Lowburn ferry bridge. Central Otago, when two of the employees fell off the staging of a temporary structure into the Clutha River and were drowned. The victims were:— Leslie Liddicoat, aged about 27, married.

Donald McElhenny, aged about 28 married.

In company with several others, the two men were working about 80ft. out on the staging at a height of some 7ft. above the river. When the accident happened a large beam was being shifted by four men, Liddicoat and McElhenny being on the farther end when it fell, and the impact knocked them into the water. Both men could swim and struck out for the hank, hut when they were only a few feet from safety they both disappeared. Workmen seeing a hat floating on the surface of the river dived in an endeavour to locate the missing men, hut were unsuccessful. The current at that spot was fairly swift.

Despite dragging operations on the sides of the river, the bodies had not been recovered to-night. Liddicoat was a resident of Ripponvale, Cromwell, and McElhenny of Oamaru.