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6.
In this deraliotion of duty lies a not very remote contributory cause.
hether from a desire to gloss over the derelioptions of duty mentioned in the preceding paragraph, or from a desire to find some means of exonerating the Military authorities from financial or other responsibility, the Court of Enquiry made a final finding in the following terms:
"That no Police were sa duty at the mouth of the tunnel at the time, nor had the Police been carrying out their duty for the previous week, when the earth wall erected at the mouth of the tunnel was demolished on several occasions and explosives removed.
The explosion took place on the 2nd January and the Court had before it the evidence of Sub-Inspector ANDERSON that police were on 24-hour duty at the mouth of the tunnel from the 5th December to the 1st January when they were taken off duty as the Military were working on the job. This evidence is corroborated by that of Major Tripp and the N.C.0. in charge of the working party.
Brigadier Fellowes in his remarks states that he himself saw police there on the very morning of the explosion.
7.
This finding of the Court is therefore in direct conflict with the evidence.
Much has been made of the sugested failure of the police to guard the entrance to the tunnel.
There is nothing whatsoever to show that looters were in or near the tunel at the time of the explosion or that any action by them caused the explosion.
If police had been present, this would not have prevented a rockfall and would merely have added to the number of casualties.
8. On the evidence before the Court of znquiry there can be no shadow of doubt that from an unstated date in October the responsible Military authorities knew that the ammunition and explosives were in the tunnel.
The responsible officer states that he saw that the ammunition and explosives were mixed and not properly stored. He must have realized - or certainly would have realized if he had made an inspection in a conscientious manner as Captain HA..DON subsequently did that rook-falls were likely and that the explosives constituted a grave danger.
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Notwithstanding this he failed to ensure that the ammunition and explosives were removed and to cause a warning to be circulated to those living in the immediate neighbourhood.
From the evidence of Captain HA.DON, R.M., it is abundantly clear that by the beginning of the last week of December it was realized that the floor of the tunnel was littered with explosives and that rock-falls might be anticipated. No amount of police guards could have averted the danger and it is purely fortui- tous that the explosion did not occur some weeks earlier.
9. It is hoped that when submitting to higher authority you will transmit
a complete record of the proceedings of the Court of Enquiry and not only the findings.
I am, Sir,
Your obedient Servant,
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Colonial Secretary
D. A.D. CLAIMS & HIRINGS,
Room 203, 2nd Floor,
Hong Kong & Shnaghai Bonk Buildings