The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-05-15
RAILROAD HORROR.
Two Trains on a Western Road
Meet With Deadly Results.
Fourteen Persons Killed or Missing and
Many Hnjured-The Wreck in Flames
GhastIy Details of the Disaster.

PITTsBURG Pa. May 14.-About 10 O'Clock thii
morning a collision occurred on the Baltimore ant
Ohio Railroad at point one mile east of Connels
vile, between west-bound freight train and an
eastbound construction train, resulting in terri
Bile loss of life. The construction train consisted Of
dump cars containing 80 laborers on their way to
Ohio pyle Falls) to work. 1t was telescoped
and number of men were crushed to death
Many of those who escaped death were terribly in
jured. The names of the killed have not been re
ceived. There is a sharp curve where the accident
occurred and both trains came together with a
crash, the cars took fire and the bodies of the
killed were eremated.
Later particulars say that west-bound freight
train colided with gravel train on the Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad, one mile east of Connelsville,
between and 10 O'Clock this morning, and from
twelve to twenty laborers were killed aud many
injured. The scene of the disaster is on a sharp
curve. The freight train was heavy laden with
ore and the gravel train consisted of six cars and
contained about fifty men. Both trains were going
at high rate Of speed and came together with a
terrible crash. The engines remained on the track
and telescoped each other into their smoke stacks,
but the heavy tenders jumped into the air and fell,
the freight tender upon its engine and the gravel
train tender back upon the rsf car In the rear Of
it. This car a scene of death. In it six men
were killed outright and four others who were
fastened down by the broken timbers were roasted
to death. the catching fire from an overturned
stove and burning up before the supplied survivors
cOulu comprehend the awful SlLuaLlOn OF Jnelr
shrieking companions Three men escaped from
the car and one of them stated that the fire could
have been extnguished had water been applied in
time TIE wreck itself a chastity sight. In
side an iron that was burned could be sit
ting among the glowing embers, iron rods and dead
ashes, three ginning skeletons, one { sit
Lng Doft--aPrisht, -apnarently peering in o the
flames that had sm0tnered OUT ms fvs~As ..4saA
large force of shop hands on the ground extin-
gushing the flames and a wrecking train was at
work pulling the debris away and rescuing the
charred remains. The burned trunks OF four OF the
victims were taken out. Across the breast of one
the white unsinged flesh contrasted strongly with
the blackened surroundings. That spot was where
the heavy timbers caught and held him until the
flames left nothing but the headless, armless and
legloss trunk. The remains were placed on a board
and laid down on the grass, when lean and hungry
deg shifted the roasted flesh al a licking his chops
descended upon the remains. Fortunately, however,
he was discovered and driven away. Officials de-
cline to say who is to blame but popular opinion
places the responsibility upon of the train run
ners
When the wreck was cleared away it was discov-
cred that IL persons were injured and IA missing.
The bodies of 10 of the latter have been recovered
the others supposed to have been completely
consumed. OF those recovered only two could be
positively identified and the others were burned
into a shapeless mass.
One of the injured died on his way to the hospi-
tai. The injured were taken to West Pennsylvania
Hospital in this city and the dead to Connelsvile
for burial