The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1876-08-01 00:00:00

FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT Ti) THE " FLYING
DUTCHMAN."

LOSEI OF LI FL

On Thursday • terrible accident happened to the Great
Western empreu train, which is popularly known as the
Flying Dutchman." This train leaving Exeter at 10.30
cacti morning, gets over the 200 miles between Exeter and
tonden in four hours and • quarter and only stops once
betwom Exeter and Bristol—at Taunton. The train con-
sisted of an engine, guard's van. and five carriages, all
specially caustructed. On entering the deep cutting just
beyond Bourton, this side of Bristd, and about six miles
from it, without any warning the engine loft the rails,
van across the down line, and went part way up the em-
bankment, dragging the guard's van and the next carriage
—• " composite "—after it. The coupling between this
first carriage and those behind broke, so that the latter
continued running on their proper set of mils. The bank
of the cutting was too steep and rookie' for the engine to
run up to the tap, and consequently when pertly up its
own weight and that of the guard's van and carrate
.
t
behind dragged it back agalni he this sSr_risir
i smears to have struck use other eanting
partlY smashed in the sides of two of them, end ratTand
them to leave the mils. As the engine came down over
the bank it crushed the guard's van to splinters and
knocked in the end of the composite carriage. The engine
itself turned over on its side with its funnel towards
Exeter—lust in the opposite direction to that in which it
had been travelling—whilst two of the wheels of the
tender got on top of the Iran body of the guard's van, and
there was • thorough wreck. The driver, Dinscembe,
was fearfully mutilated, and he expired very shortly I
afterwards in the arms of one of the passengers who
had come to his &mistime,. He was conscious to the
last and his expiring utterance was "Lord, receive
my soul!" The stoker. !Amble, met with instan.
tetwous death. The guard who was in the front van—
Watts—besides being most severely shaken, had one arm
entirely shattered. lisessim, the guard in the binder part
' the train, was uninjured, but • relieving switchman
named Clemente was hurt Many of She passengers were
titbit's& end all were severely shaken.
The injuries to the passengers are reported to be very
serious, them being, at least, ten or twelve sufferers, one
OT two lying M a precarious state. Both lines being
blocked, the perimeters were transferred from one aide of
the wreck to the other.
The up-line near the scene of the dreadful accident was
...leered of the debris Friday night, and since then the
while of the traffic has been worked on that line, the down
trains creasing the line at Bourn:in. The work of remov.
Mg the damaged engine and tender is still going on, but
it will scarcely be completed to-night The engine, tank,
together with the damaged carriages, has been removed to
B and the engine itself has been placed in position
preparatory to tieing put on • truck for removal. The
task of removal is very difficult and dangerous, owing to
the position of the engine near the embankment and its
nsormous weight—calculated to be at least forty tons. All
the injured people are progressing favourably. Fifteen
cases of injury have been officially notified to the
°VII% Nest was opened on Friday at L ton,Ash
before Mr. araddoc mk, Coroner for East Soen re etshi .
Mr. Green. superintendent of the railway police, arho
knew the men well, was called to identify Dunscombe
and Randall, the stoker and driver; but, after • careful
examination, he said he was unable to identify them,
because they were so dreadfully mutilated. A fireman in
the employ of the company then identified the bodies,
The was all the evidence taken, and the enquiry was
ad4leautrsed till Wednesday next.
was only the second journey the stoker had taken
with "The }lying Dutchman."