INQUIRY INTO ALPS TRAGEDY

Wanganui Chronicle, 6 March 1947, Page 5

INQUIRY INTO ALPS TRAGEDY

CLIMBERS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ROPED TOGETHER (P.A.) Timaru, March 4 The opinion that the climbers should have been roped together in groups of not more than four and that he himself would not have risked a party of 19, obviously inadequately equipped, down the slope in question, was' given by Guide M. Bowie, in evidence at the inquest into the death of two members of the Victoria College Tramping Club on the Neumann Range, on January 1. The coroner reserved his verdict. The inquest concerned the death of Roy McGregor Dickson and Stanley Charles Allaway, both of whom lost their lives when a srowslide on the precipitous slopes oi the Neumann Range, leading down to the Dobson Valley involved 11 of the 19 climbers. Conducting the inquiry on behalf of the police, Senior-Sergeant S. King put pertinent questions to several members of the party on the lines of those asked of the leader, Frank Foster Ivison, which were as follow:

Senior-Sergeant King: If you are an experienced climoer and are ranked a prominent Dominion climber, would you consider it right and proper to adhere strictly to the fundamental rules laid down by past and present mountaineers in regard to the physical condition, equipment and submission to the guide and leader?—Yes. Did you examine your party in respect of equipment?—No. How many of your party did you know to be inadequately equipped?— None was inadequately equipped. Do you now tnink your party was too large for such an excursion? —No.

I understand that certain members of the party were equipped with sticks only. Is that so? —Yes. Had not your experience taught you that and the condition it was in called for extreme caution on that particular day?—Yes. Do you think, after two months’ reflection, that it would have been better if you had insisted on roping the climbers in groups of four or five?—No.

If you had control or the leadership of a similar party, would you act differently now?—No. Why did you allow this party, as a whole, to decide whether or not they should be roped?—l did not allow the party to decide. The matter was discussed and I made the decision. 1 took the advice of the other members and on their advice I acted.

Do you know that since 1930 23 persons have lost their lives in similar accidents, and that most of these accidents could have been avoided? —My explanation of the primary cause oi the accident was the peculiar condition of the snow.

Did you consider the probabilities of danger, or did you in any way consider the possibility of untorseen changes of condition? —No. The whole of the stronger members of the party were proceeding with due caution.

Some of the less experienced climbers could not have been stepping as carefully as was necessary in the soft, wet snow lying at a steep angle, stated James Witten-Hannah, a civil servant, ol Wellington, “in my opinion, although climbing ropes may not have been required by the actual difficulty of the ascent, and would probably not have assisted the party when it was involved in a general snow slide, roping the partyin groups of four or five would have given more control over the movements of the individual members of the party.” He added: “The only defect in the conduct of the party by its leaders, Ivison and Scotney, was that it was too unwieldy for them to exercise proper control.' Recalling the descent of the Neumann Range into the Dobson Valley, Albert Henry Scotney, a teacher at Rongotai College, Wellington, said all went well until they reached a slightly steeper part of the slope. He stopped on the steep part, and urged all the party to keep to the steps made by the leader. “Within a minute or two of resuming I heard'a woman’s voice call “Oh”, and, on looking round, saw a girl sliding down in a sitting position," Scotney continued. “Sensing the danger I shouted to the party “dig in your axes.” I repeated thi s twice, but almost immediately a number of the others lost their fooling and the snow started to move. I was carried away with it." When he finally came to a slop, Scotney said, he found himself in company with six climbers, including Allaway and Dickson. Th? former dead, having extensive head injuries. Dickson was alive and suffering from a severe laceration on his right side. He struggled lor a while and had to be roped to a (limber. Witten-Han-nah, to prevent him from from falling clown the next bluff. He died 10 or 43 minutes later.