ON THE BRINK

Southland Times, Issue 19502, 17 March 1925, Page 8

ON THE BRINK

A TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE A MOTORIST’S NARROW ESCAPE CAR OVERTURNED IN WIND-SWEPT CUTTING (Special to the Times.) CHRISTCHURCH, March 16. For three hours, a resident of Ashburton, Herbert Jessop, clung to a guard chain on the side of the big cutting leading to the Rakaia Gorge. It was the only thing which saved him from a drop of 150 feet on to the rocks below, and all the while, a howling, shrieking nor’-wester tore through the opening, battering the unfortunate man with broken pieces of rock and stones as big as hen’s eggs. The strength of the wind can be gauged from the fact that it lifted the 22cwt of a new Dodge car into the air and threw it over on its side against the edge of the cutting.

It was a terrible experience, but fortunately there was no loss of life, though the car was damaged very much. The mishap occurred on Saturday morning at about 11 o’clock. Mr Jessop was motoring down the cutting into the Rakaia Gorge when the wind, which had been fairly strong, suddenly assumed the force of a terrible gale. It lifted the car into the air and crashed it against the side of the road.

Mr Jessop was caught in the vortex, which carried him from the car and threw him against the chain guard that protects tra ellers on the road from the yawning gulch below. The motorist attempted to get to his feet, with the intention of protecting himself in his car, but the gale was too strong and he was farced to cling to the chain for three painful hours. Battered by stones and pieces of rock, Mr Jessop hung on the brink of the gulch until the wind abated and he was able to get to his car. The whole of one side of the car was pitted and dented by the stones and rocks, and the Sun says it looked as though emery paper had been used to remove the enamel. The hood of the car was tom away and has not yet been found. Broken lamjis and windscreen also help to fill the bill for repairs. Fortunately for Mr Jessop, the engine was not damaged, and he was able to right the car and eventually, though very slowly, get to Ashburton.