ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 4741, 5 September 1893, Page 3

ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

THE CYCLONE. [Special to Press Association."! WASHINGTON, Sept. 3. The death roll of the recent cyclone now amounts to fifteen hundred. The corpses are beißg buried in large trenches.

[Peb Press Association.] AUCKLAND, Sept. 4,> An explosion of gas occurred at the Working Men's Club last night. A gaspipe had been gnawed by rats. Little damage was done.

An explosion of gas occurred on Sunday evening at the residence of Mrs Jeffa, at the corner of Frederick and Cumberland streets, Dunedin. It appears that Mrs Jeffs, who waß in bed, detected a smell of gas, and called her daughter, a girl of fourteen, to go downstairs and turn off the gas at the meter. The girl did so, and returning upstairs with a lighted candle went into the front room. A large quantity of gas must evidently have collected in the room, as a violent explosion followed her entry. The girl was blown through the door-way into the passage, and was burned somewhat about the face and hands, but her injuries are not supposed to be serious. The force of the explosion is shown by the fact that the door -was wrenched from the hinges and the panels blown clean out. The glass in the front room windows was also blown out and the curtains caught fire, but were speedily torn down. The plaster of the room was badly damaged, and the glass in the windows of four adjoining I rooms and the Venetian blind in a back I room were blown out. The house is [ insured in the Union office. Considering the force of the explosion, it is surprising that tho damage was not greater.