ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.
James Thomas Neve, an employee at Strachan's brewery, died suddenly yesterday morning under peculiar circumstances. Deceased was engaged in working in a freezing chamber, and carried an electric torch lor the purpose of illuminating the interior. His body was discovered by a fellow employee, who observed that the torch was lying beneath deceased's chin, which appeared to have been burnt. No one seems to have witnessed the fatality, which appears to have been due to his falling across the electric wires. Medical aid was at once summoned, but the man was quite dead when the doctor arrived. He was 29 years of age, and resided with his mother at 90 Leith street. An inquest will be held at the Morgue this forenoon. -Otago Daily Times, 9/12/1914.
ACCIDENT AT A BREWERY.
THE INQUEST.
DEATH BY ELECTROCUTION.
The inquest into the circumstances surrounding the death of James Thomas Neve, who was alleged to have been killed as the result of an electric shock at Messrs Strachan and Co.'s brewery was resumed to-day at the Magistrate's Court, before the Coroner, Mr C. C. Graham, S.M. Sergeant McKeefry represented the police, Mr H. D. Bedford appeared for the mother of deceased, and Mr W. C. MacGregor for Messrs Strachan and Co.
Dr McKellar (recalled) deposed to having made a post mortem on the body. He found the brain normal. There was no sign of apoplexy or other disease. The heart was quite empty of blood, and the blood in the veins round the heart was quite fluid. If death had been due to a weak heart he would have expected to have found clots of blood in the ventricles. The fluid blood and the absence of clots is what one would expect from a death caused by an electric shock. The liver and kidneys were full of blood, but healthy otherwise. The other organs were healthy. There was no bruising about the scalp. He examined the scar on the neck. It was deep. The lower end of the scar on the right side lay over the vagus nerve and extended almost to the windpipe. The vagus nerve, when slightly stimulated, as by electricity, caused a slowing down of the heart's action; a stronger current caused instant stoppage of the heart. These were well known physiological facts and were to be found in all text books on the subject. A moderately strong electrical current acting on the vagus nerve would cause instant death, and the condition of the deceased's heart bore the appearance that action had been suddenly stopped after the ventricles had contracted; sudden stoppage having been the cause of death.
In reply to Mr Bedford: The vagus nerve was very sensitive.
In reply to the Coroner Mr MacGregor said he had no evidence to offer. It was an unfortunate accident.
Frank Roland Shepherd said he was an electrical engineer. He had examined the portable electrical lamp which deceased was using at the time of his death. The lamp itself was in good order, and under ordinary circumstances was quite safe. He thought the accident was entirely due to moisture. There was quite a pool of water where the lamp was lying, and where deceased's body was picked up. Water was a good conductor. There was a general leakage as the result of the moisture.
To Mr MacGregor: He had made tests and found there was a voltage of from 50 to 70 volts. A man touching a live wire with his hand with the voltage named would not be seriously injured. The accident was doubtless due to the deceased falling on the lamp. It was his opinion that deceased must have fallen prior to receiving the shock, which caused his death. The case was quite an exceptional one.
To Mr Bedford: Had the wire been "earthed" it would have been safer.
The Coroner said the evidence disclosed that the cause of death was failure of the heart's action, due to an electric shock, which was the result of the deceased having slipped and fallen on an electric lamp which he was using at the time. -Evening Star, 10/12/1914.
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