West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Wednesday 22 January 1896, page 3


THE HEAT WAVE IN NEW

SOUTH WALES.

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE

DEATHS IN SYDNEY.

A SLIGHT FALL IN THE TEMPERA-

TURE.

TWENTY-SEVEN DEATHS AT BOURKE.

SYDNEY, January 20.

Telegrams from the western portions of the colony announce a slight fall in the temperature, but the change is so slight as to be of very little benefit to the baked-up settlers.

Twenty-seven deaths from heat apoplexy have occurred at Bourke up to date, among the latest being that of Mr. G. C. Loughinean, formerly the chairman of the Central Com-pany.

At Warren twenty persons have been stricken down by sunstroke, though only a few cases have ended fatally. Two more deaths occurred at Coonamble yesterday, one being that of Mr. Hickey, a prominent resident who succumbed almost immediately after leaving church. At Cobar two children have died, and at West Wyalong Mr. Davi-son, a local mining man, while standing,

expired.

Everywhere cheep and cattle are dying in hundreds, and herbage is being shrivelled up with incredible rapidity.

The mortality returns from Sydney last week totalled 250 deaths, half of which were directly attributable to heat apoplexy. This return has not been approached since the severe outbreak of influenza some three years ago, when the death rate jumped up 50 per

cent.

Applications was made by a number of members of Parliament to the Railway Com-missioners to-day that special train arrange-ments should be made by tbe Department to enable settlers and residents in the western portion of the colony to reach the mountains, and so escape from the great heat prevail-ing in the interior. Mr. Eddy, in reply, premised to run a train every Friday at holiday excursion rates for the next month.