10th july 1916.train alley
pte james blair was on stretcher bearer duty in train alley with some other men,as he moved along the trench he caught his foot on a grid that was covering a sump hole,as he fell,his rifle discharged a round,and blew off the second finger of his right hand,he was evacuated to the 39th casualty clearing station and placed under arrest until enquiries could be made about the incident,ptes william beresford and arthur,g norris both confirmed that it was a accident, a statement from cpl tatlock who was also on duty,could not be obtained as he has been evacuated to hospital with wounds
pte edward thorniley was also injured on the same day,he stated that he was cleaning his rifle and he touched the trigger,and the rifle went off,injuring his hand,there were no witnesses,he was also sent to the 39th CCS and placed under arrest
the officer commanding the 39th CCS recieved a note from divisional HQ to say that both privates are to be released from arrest without prejudice,and evacuated home as soon as possible.
on stretcher bearer duty with pte 8380 james blair,8 fleetwood st,ancoats
pte 9807 william beresford,18th manchesters
pte 10190 arthur,g norris,18th manchesters
cpl 10794 joseph tatlock,18th manchesters
pte 8307 edward thorniley,27 new york st,manchester
17th manchesters
