From the Maitland Mercury report:
On Monday last the Dungog to Maitland mail coach driver James Brereton left Dungog around 2.30pm and after picking up mail at Seaham, Clarence Town and Glen Oak, arrived at Hinton Post Office, in Paterson Street, about 9pm with 5 passengers and 14 bags of mail.
Soon after the coach left the Post Office the leading reins got caught up in the leading bar and the driver had to alight to fix them.
Then, soon after as the driver pulled to one side to pass a buggy ahead of him, the wheels of the coach struck a culvert near Watson’s store.
The driver was thrown off and the horses bolted down towards the punt, came into the punt yard, onto the punt, straight through the punt and into the river.
Full article (by Peter Bogan) available at Maitland Mercury, Sept. 10, 2014.
