Two die in golf club tragedy

Two women were killed when the roof of Riverside Golf Club at West Lakes, near Adelaide, South Australia, collapsed yesterday (Tuesday).

The ceiling and timber beams crumbled and caved in on 50 women golfers having lunch in the clubhouse after their golf day and in the chaos that ensued, two members – aged 70 and 54 – died. Another eight were injured.

"I thought we were all gone; all of us," Faye Snelling, told the Adelaide Advertiser. She received minor injuries.

The cause of the collapse is not known though government inspectors, examining the scene, believe it happened within minutes of the air conditioning being switched on. It had been installed when extensions were completed in 1995.

Some golfers attempted to take cover under a table which was crushed by the falling ceiling.

South Australian Ambulance Service paramedics arrived to find dozens of women walking around in a daze, some with severe cuts. Most were elderly.