SHOCKING RAILWAY ACCIDENT
LITTLE BOY’S SAD END.
TERRIBLE INJURIES.
A little boy of five years of age named John Driver was the victim of a tragic occurrence that took place yesterday afternoon on the railway line at Wharf street, near the rear of the engine sheds on the Anderson Bay road. So far as is known, the accident was not witnessed by anyone, the unfortunate little boy, with all his limbs terribly injured, being found within the goods yard railings by a shunter on his way home from work. He was removed to the hospital, where it was found necessary to amputate both legs and hands; but at 11 o’clock last night he died.
Although frightfully injured, the boy was conscious when he was found on the track by Mr Cecil Chave, a shunter, at 3.30 p.m., and was able to give Mr Chavoehis name and address. He said he had been riding on the trucks, behind a railway engine, and that one had run over him. It was subsequently found that a train had recently shunted from the engine sheds along the Tahuna line and then proceeded to the goods sheds by the Wharf street entrance. The driver has stated that he did not see the accident.
Inquiries made by the South Dunedin police this morning elicited the fact that two other boys — Evan Bain, aged five years and a-half, and Alick Kilpatrick, aged five years — were playing with deceased on the railway yesterday after school. They all ran after the train, and caught hold of it. From what can be gathered from the two boys, an elder boy called out to them to get away from the train, and they ran away. Driver, however, could not have heard, and stayed where he was, with the result that the train shunted the other way and knocked him down. The boy who gave the warning did not see Driver, nor did he see anything of the accident, as he was on the opposite side of the train. When the little sufferer was admitted to the hospital, to which he was conveyed in a Post Office motor, he was still conscious, and his chief concern was with regard to his school bag. It was found that his limbs were badly crushed, and an operation was performed to amputate them; but he died as stated above. He resided at 10 Rankeilor street, South Dunedin. An inquest on the body was opened at the hospital late this afternoon. -Evening Star, 21/3/1923.
BOY’S TRAGIC DEATH
TIIE INQUEST CONTINUED.
The inquiry into the causes which led to the death of the little boy, John Francis Driver, who was fatally injured at the Andersons Bay road branch line on the 20th ult., was continued at the Magistrate’s Court before Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M., on Monday, 26th ult. Sergeant. Murray represented the police and Mr G. Greig, traffic inspector, appeared for the Railway Department.
Allan Hardy, 13 years of age, said that lie attended the Kensington School. He was going along the Anderson’s Bay bicycle track on the Tuesday about half past 3. He saw two little boys hanging on to a truck on a goods train which was shunting back to the yards. He went over to tell them to go away. The train went on, and the boys then ran back to him and told him that Johnny Driver had been run over. The distance from where he saw the boys to where Johnny Driver as lying was about three and a-half chains. He went over to where the boy was. He was sitting up between the rails. Two men then came along and attended to the boy.
Evan Bain, five years of ago, one of the small boys referred to by the previous witness, said that on the Tuesday he was playing with Alex. Kirkpatrick and Johnny Driver near the line. Witness and Alex got hold of a truck, and Johnny get hold of a truck in front. They hopped off after the truck had gone a little way and they then saw Johnny Driver lying on the line. Witness saw he had been hurt and went and told the bigger boy.
Harry P. Stanaway, goods agent, said that the accident had been reported to him. He had examined the trucks after the train came in. On the trailing wheels of the second last truck and on the leading wheels of the last waggon (on the harbour side of both trucks) were marks indicating that someone had been run over. He also saw marks on the axle box. He thought that the boy had hung on to the side of the truck and rested his feet on the axle box and had then slipped underneath as the waggon moved. The rails were open to the harbour.
The Coroner said that his verdict would be that the bov had died from shock, following on injuries accidentally received through being run over by a railway truck. It was one of those unfortunate misadventures which would often happen. He could not see that there any negligence on the part of the Railway Department. The only thing to minimise the possibility of such accidents was for teachers to keep continually impressing on the lads the danger of traveling on the foreshore in the vicinity of the railway line. He had to express his deep sympathy with the parents of the boy. -Otago Witness, 3/4/1923.
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