Russian Practically Decapitated by Overhead Carriage A. distressing accident happened on Wednesday' at the Riverside power-station of the Municipal Electricity Department, whereby Russian employee lost his life. The man, G. C. Istonin, was temporarily employed at the station, on the coal transporting plant, from June un early in September, 1925, during the strike, on the termination of which he was taken on permanently, on similar duties, and was ro engaged up to the time of his death.
On Tuesday, he had occasion to fo to a spot close to where the overhead carriage vuus un a steel track, in order (o make a'small adjustment. Moving done what was necessary, he called to the operator below that all was in onder, and the operator, assuming that, according to practice, Istonin had gone to his proper station, again set the machinery in motion, not. thinking that anything was amiss. On the return journey of the cai age he made the shocking discovery of the deceased's body evushed between the steel-work, practically decapitated. The station's own doctor was available on the spot, but. Istonin was beyond his aid and died in a few minutes, his head having been very badly crushed.
The accident is not easy to understand for the man's head should not have been where it was, ale though he might have slipped. In any ease, however, he was not sup= posed to give the "all clear" signal until he was back at his proper station.
Judge Keh and-¥fr, Van ten Berge conducted an inquest at the Public Mortuary on Thursday, return~ ing a verdict that death' was due to un accident, and finding that deceased probably gave the signal "all clear" too quickly, whilst he did not come down sufficiently to avoid being struck by the wheel of the carriage. A recommendation was made that the Council should make reasonable compassionate grant to deceased's family.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.