From ninemsn.com.au....
Veteran reporter Richard Carleton dies at mine site
Sunday May 7 15:12 AEST
Veteran Nine Network reporter Richard Carleton has died after suffering a suspected heart attack at Tasmania's Beaconsfield Gold Mine, Tasmanian police say.
"He has died," Tasmanian police constable Phil Pike told AAP.
Nine presenter Mike Munro confirmed the death during a televised news update.
"He was given treatment on the spot and taken to hospital," a visibly shaken Munro said.
"He was taken to hospital, as you can see, where doctors have only just pronounced him dead.
"Our friend and colleague, Richard Carleton, from 60 Minutes, dead."
Tasmanian government adviser Shaun Rigby said he saw Carleton collapse soon after asking a question at a press conference about the mine rescue.
"I saw him, and I said 'he's down' and we rushed over there pretty much straight away," Mr Rigby told reporters.
He said a radio journalist began CPR while Mr Rigby called an ambulance and sent someone to the mine site to get medical experts working with the trapped miners.
Among them was Dr Andrew Hughes, the director the Tasmanian Medical Retrieval Service, who has been working closely with the trapped miners.
Dr Hughes was the main doctor who worked on Carleton before was taken away in an ambulance, Mr Rigby said.
He said people had been traumatised by the veteran reporter's death.
"There's people in tears, there's people in shock. It's been horrible - it's just horrible," Mr Rigby said.
He said he had tried to offer Carleton some dignity as he lay on the ground.
"I basically told people to clear the area, get some blankets. Everyone deserves a bit of dignity especially when lying on your back in that situation with 30 cameras (around)," Mr Rigby said.
"People from Nine, Seven, all kinds of people from all kinds of networks helped out.
"And we took them in there (to the mine's media centre) sat them down and had a coffee."
©AAP 2006
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