Strange Poisoning case.
Fatal Results.
(Per Press Association.) DUNEDIN. April 28.
Archibald. McKay and John Gilmour Anderson, employed at the Milburn lime and cement works, are at present in a critical condition, presumably through inhaling poisonous acid fumes. They were engaged on Tuesday in removing zinc from galvanised wire by dipping it in a sack of hydrochloric or muriatic acid, and it is thought the fumes of the acid, which has extremely poisonous action, got into the men's system through breathing. They became very ill on leaving off work, and medical aid was called in, but up to the present neither of them has rallied to any extent and to-day their dying depositions were taken. Anderson, who is a single man, and brother to the Drainage Board's engineer, was removed to the hospital. McKay, who is a married man with a family, was found to be too weak to make any statement, and the doctor, who saw him tonight considers his case hopeless.
DUNEDIN. This Day. Archibald McKay, one of the victims of the cement works poisoning case, died early this morning. -Manawatu Standard, 27/4/1906.
POISONOUS FUMES.
(For Press Association.) Dunedin, last night. Mr Anderson, the second victim of the cement works drainage poisoning, died at the hospital at one this afternoon.
The N.Z. Herald’s special correspondent wired from Dunedin on Friday: Archibald McKay died early this morning. He .was one of the two men employed at the cement works at Pelichet Bay, who were taken seriously ill on Tuesday, after doing work in which they were using a solution of hydrochloric acid and water for the purpose of removing the galvanising from galvanised wire netting. It was intended yesterday afternoon to take the deceased's dying depositions, but Dr. Evans negatived this, owing to the fact that the man’s condition was such that it would be impossible for him to make any statement. He did not subsequently recover sufficiently to enable him to make a statement, and during the evening he became unconscious, and died early this morning. The other victim, John Gillman Anderson, lies at the hospital, still in the same critical state. His depositions have been taken.
The body of McKay was removed to the morgue this morning, and Mr Graham, S.M., opened an inquest there this afternoon. The evidence showed that McKay had been an employee of the Milburn Lime and Cement Company for between seven and eight years, and was 38 years of age. Prior to the accident he was in perfectly good health. The inquest was adjourned until nest Friday, in order to allow of Professor Black making an analysis of some of the organs. Dr. Evans was making a post mortem examination this afternoon. Anderson is a brother of Mr J. T. Noble Anderson, engineer to the Dunedin drainage Board. There is some suspicion that the men were poisoned by a gas which is known as arseniurated hydrogen. It is known that most ores — zinc amongst them — contain arsenic as an impurity, and that a combination of arsenic and hydrogen, which is a component of hydrochloric acid, forms the rare and extremely poisonous gas mentioned. -Gisborne Times, 1/5/1906.
SOUTHERN NEWS.
(By Telegraph — Press Association.)
THE ACID-POISONING CASE.
DUNEDIN, Wednesday. The inquest touching the death of Alexander McKay, who, with J. G* Anderson, was a victim of acid-poisoning at the Milburn Lime and Cement Works while engaged degalvanising was concluded today. The jury returned the following verdict: "That Archibald McKay met his death from inhaling fumes of arsenuireted hydrogen, which in the opinion of the jury was generated through mixing a solution of muriatic acid and water in a cask that had been previously used to mix Havoc, a compound known to contain arsenic." -Auckland Star, 17/5/1906.
deposition
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ST19060428.2.37?query=archibald%20mckay
imquest
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19060516.2.79?query=archibald%20mckay
inquest
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WH19060516.2.51?query=archibald%20mckay
inquest
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WH19060516.2.51?query=archibald%20mckay
verdict
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TH19060517.2.57?query=archibald%20mckay
managers evidence
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/GEST19060517.2.2.3?query=archibald%20mckay
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