The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-01-06
NUMEROUS RAILROAD DISASTER
Two Locomotives and a Train of
Eight Cars Jump Bridge and
then Burn Up.

Weeh, near ASntaDuIa, OllO, OCCuTieu one OF
the most frightful railroad disasters ever re-
corded. There was a heavy snow storm at
the time, the train was nearly two hours be-
mind, running slowly in the dark. About q
quarter of Il mile east of the station at Ashta.
oula the road crosses a creek, spanded by an
iron bridge 1876 feet long, resting on stone
aOutments 20 feet above the water Of the
stream The train was drawn by two loco
motives, and consisted of II cars, six of them
being passenger coaches and drawing-room
cars, all well filled with passengers. The
best accounts say the total number on board
was 100, exclusive OF ten or fifteen children.
The whole train was on the bridge, the front
locomotive having passed over, when there
was terrific crash, and the entire train. ex-
cept only the front locomotive, sank into the
dark abyss, the coaches IN the rear piling on
the top OF each other, crushing all into hid
eous wreck, the horror of which reached It's
climax by the whole mass Immediately tax.
ing fire, so that in five minutes the whole was
developed in flames. That any person on the
train under such circumstances should have
escaped death seems almost miraculous; vet
from rs to 100 did escape, though nearly all
were more or less burned or injured. A vivid
idea of the occurrence may be gathered from
the following narrative of Miss Shepard, of
Ripon, Wis, who was one of the saved
The passengers were grouped about the
cars in twos, fours and larger parties. Some
were lUnching, some We're chatting and quite
a number playing cards. The bell-rope snap
ped in two, one piece flying against one of the
lamp globes, smashing it and knocking the
burning candle to the floor. Then the cars
ahead Of US went bump, bump, bump, as if
the wheels were jumping over tiles.
Several jumped up, and some seized the
tops of the seats to steady themselves. A half
minute or so had now elapsed since the rope
broke Suddenly there was an awful crash.
| can't describe the noise. There were all
sorts of sounds. | could hear above all q
sharp, ringing sound, as ifall the glass in the
train was being shattered to pieces. Some
one cried out, I'VE are going down." Atthat
moment all the lights in the car went out. 1t
was utter darkness. | stood up in the centre
of the aisle. knew that something awful
was happening, and having had some previ-
Gus experience in railroad accidents, braced
myself the best knew how. l felt the car
floor sinking from under my feet. The sensa-
! ton of falling was very apparent. Thoughts
| of great many things, and made up my
mind that was going to be killed. For the
first few seconds we seemed 10 be dropping
in silence. could hear the other passengers
breathing. Then suddenly the car was filed
with flying splnters and dust, and we seemed
breathing some heavy substance For mo-
ments l was almost sutfocated We went
down, down--oh, it was awful. 1t seemed 10
me that we had been falling two minutes.
The berths were slipping from their tasten-
ings and falling upon the passengers. We
heard an awful crash. AS the sound died
away we heard heavy groans all around us.
1t was as dark as the grave.
| was thrown Gown. a gentleman had
fallen across me, but we were both on our feet
in moment. Every one was scrambing and
struggling to get out. | heard some one say,
Hurry out; the car will be on fire in a min
ute.' Another man shouted, The water is
coming in and we will be drowned The
car seemed lying partly on one side. In the
scramble man caught hold of me and called
out, Help me; don leave me! woman
cried from one corner of the car, Help me,
save my husband He was caught under a
berth and some seats. was feeling around
in the dark, trying to release him, when some
men at the other end of the car said they were
all right, and would help the man out. l
CROPPED along to the door, crawling over the
fire had not yet broken out in our Car. While
was getting out through the door the others
were climbing out through the windows.
On the left the cars were in a blaze On
the right pile of rubbish, as high as could
see barred escape. Ia front of me were some
cars standing on end, or in sloping position.
followed man who was trying to scale the
pile Of debris. got on t coach which was
resting on one edge of the root The side
\; "A .o,, 81, I t,11 ~ al
on ii, ana so | crawed along over 1t. The
car was dark inside, and oh, what heartrend-
ing groans issued from it. 1t seemed filled
with people who were dying. Two men
helped me down from the end of the car.
Then | was in the snow up to my knees.
Right under our feet lay man, his head down
10 a hole, and his legs under the corner OF the
car. He asked US to help him, and MIR. Tyler
and Mr.. White released his legs somehow,
and some other men carried him away. Inc
wind was blowing terrible gale.
BY this time the whole scene was lighteu
up by the burning cars | could see that the
bridge had broken off even with the abut-
ments The abutnen,s looked as high as
Niagara Away above us could see crowd
of spectators. Down in the wreck there was
a perfect panic. The people were beside
themselves Some were so badly frightened
and panic.stricken that they had to be drag
red out of the cars 10 prevent their being
burned up. don't want to appear invidious,
but must say that the women, the few who
were not killed outright, behaved more cour-
agrously than the men, as rule.
Before we got out of the chasm, the whole
train was in blaze. The locomotive the
cars, and the bridga were mixed up in one In
distinguishable mass. From the burning
heap came shreks and groans and the most
piteous cries for help. | could hear, far
above me, the claugor OF bells In the village,
alar ming the citizens. We climbed up the
steep side of the gorge, laundering in snow
two feet deep. they took us into an engine
house, where there was big furnace nre.
The wounded were brought in and laid on
The floor. They were injured in every con-
c.iv,hl woy Sumo had their legs broken,