HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1958-04-09, Page 7..0.4voc150,531"Sr.V4.3,440y.40?
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How Many Can. We Spare?
Public safety is everyone's responsibility, and it
must, .of necessity, jest most heavily upon the parents
of younger children, who are all too often the victims
of :acCidntal injury aid •death. Facing the chilling
shock of a second di Owning in less than a year. at the
Lower Town dam, The Advarte-Tinies publishes the
pictures on this page a reminder to parents and
public officials alike that we have many dangerous
and 'unprotected points alopg our river system.
Top left shows the abutment from which the little
Fluotee boy toppled to.his death into the swirling
pool beneath tbwdana.
Top centre is that, a the footbridge which spans
the powerhouse raceway, .with no railings on either
side, The Lower' Town school is only a matter of
two or three hundred yards away from this point. . ,
Top right: The precipitous banks of the race at
the point where a yOung girl drowned in the :early
summer last year. A footpath follows the top of the
bank, only one careless step away from the unprotect-
ed Ver'ge of deep and Often fast-flowing water.
The picture alf,left centre shows Wingharn's most
popular swimining spOt, where small children, as well
as Young people enjoy themselves every 'summer.
There have been several very close callS at this point,
the most recent being an occasion,last .summer when
:c..:tatlaing,hut the immediate presence of - workmen en-,
gaged nearby saved the lives of two, youngsters.
Centre right shows water pouring out of the ruins
Of the Howson mill, a. spat which never fails to attract
the interest of younger boys,.and in which an expert,
adult swimmer would find extreme difficulty staying
afloat..
Picture at lower left indicates the attraction of
these danger -spots, Some yoUngster's raft is all ready
torJaunching into tl .e. churning waters at the mill site.,
At loWer right is the gaping hole in the top of the
haill foun'clation, just off-the roadway, with the full
force of the old mill race, tearing through the lower
level, Death waits here for nothing more than a child's
misstep.
At none of these danger points are there life pre-
servers, boats, life-ropes or grappling irons: These.
areas simply cannot be shut off from public use. Par-
ents might be well advised to go to these places and
see for themselves the need for constant warnings to
their- children. Wingham has no more young lives
to spare.
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