OVERWHELMED

Waikato Times, Volume 122, Issue 20465, 4 April 1938, Page 8

OVERWHELMED

KOPUAWHARA VICTIMS STREAM DAMMED UP GRAPHIC EVIDENCE AT INQUEST DUMPED SPOIL SUGGESTION (By Telegraph.—Press Association) WAIROA, Monday I The inquests on those victims of the Kopuawhara tragedy whose bodies were recovered was resumed to-day by the coroner, Mr V. E. Winter. The tragedy occurred when Public Works Camp No. 4 was overwhelmed by floodwaters and twenty men and one young woman lost their lives. Sergeant John Mclntosh (Hastings) conducted the inquests for the police and Mr L. W. Willis Napier) represented the Public Works Department. Rupe William Rangi, a bridge builder employed on public works, said on February 18 he was working at No. 6. camp. It was drizzling in the morning but came on to rain heavily In the afternoon, continuing until the evening of February 18. At 11.15 he crossed the bridge on his .way home and noticed that the water In the stream was then fairly high but he did not think there was any danger of flood. He had seen rain falling as heavily on previous occasions but there was no flood. Marooned on Cookhouse He was pulled out of bed about 3.30 a.m. by a man named Boyle who said the camp was under water. The electric light had failed. Witness went towards the single men's quarters and found It hopeless 60 turned back. At that time water was coming over the single men's quarters. He could see the cookhouse and some men crouched on the roof. As the cookhouse collapsed they gradually worked their way to an annexe. Witness secured ropes and secured a motor-car, focussing Its headlights on the cookhouse roof. He saw a man drifting down the current. Then he saw him pulled on to the cookhouse with the aid of ropes. About twenty people were brought ashore from the cookhouse. Witness stated that he had been living in the camp since June, 1936. He had never seen a stream come over the banks and always considered the camp safe. He knew No. 6 tunnel and for some time the Public Works Department had been dumping spoil taken from the tunnel Into the stream. He did not think this dumping would have any bearing on the disaster. The single men's quarters were about lift, or 12ft. above the level of the stream, which was about 80 feet wide at this point. Stream Forms Bottleneck Bong! said the spoil from the tunnell was dumped on the side of the old bed but not into the water. The 6poil would bo about nine feet deep over the old bed or perhaps a little more. About three chains below the corner where the spoil was dumped tho stream formed a bottleneck, the width of the stream at this point being much narrower. James Thomas Dorrien, one of the survivors, said he had lived in a tent at the camp for 13 months and considered it quite safe so far as floods were concerned. He was awakened about 3 a.m. on February 19. He saw it was raining hard and he could hear the roar of boulders. He got out of bed and when he looked out the water was not over the camp. He then dressed and went down the lines of tents calling out to others to get out. Witness climbed to the roof of tho cookhouse, where there were about five others. Later the cookhouse gradually collapsed and they climbed to the roof of the annexe. Witness said his reason for saying the camp was safe was that large totara trees were growing on It during the time he had been at the camp.. He had never experienced such a heavy rainfall. Timber Jamb Upstream Witness Dorrien said the water did not come in one wall but gradually and quickly. From the time when he got up to the time the water appeared to meet its maximum height it would be about 10 to 15 minutes. He saw something that gave him the idea that the water was dammed up. When he saw the logs it struck him that there had been a timber jamb further upstream. Thomas Dunlea, another survivor, said he had always regarded the camp as being quite safe and that there was no danger from the stream.