FATAL ACCIDENT

Southland Times, Issue 19345, 10 September 1924, Page 6

FATAL ACCIDENT

CRUSHED BY TRACTOR. DEATH AT WANTWOOD. Advice was received by the Gore police yesterday afternoon that a fatal accident had taken place at Wantwood Station, Mandeville. It appears that Mr William Crawford, of Riversdale, was engaged in driving a tractor on the farm, and that the machine capsized, pinning him underneath. An urgent appeal was made for help in order to extricate Mr Crawford, and assistants for this work were speedily on the scene. One of the helpers stated to a Gore Ensign reporter that Mr Crawford had been working on a contract for Messrs McLeod Brothers, and had the discs attached to the tractor. He was observed working in one of the paddocks at 9 o’clock this morning, but when he did not arrive home for lunch a search was made for him.

Apparently the tractor got stuck in a piece of boggy ground, and the driver put on extra power to get the machine out. The front part of the tractor, judging from its position, had pulled itself into the air and the machine somersaulted, pinning the victim between it and the discs. He wks dead when discovered.

Mr Crawford had just commenced his task yesterday morning, and the accident happened close to the Want wood Homestead.

Mr William Crawford, who was a brother of Mr Andrew D. Crawford, of Gore, was a married man with two children, and resided at Macandrew township, near Riversdale. An inquest will be held to-day.