Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-02-15
HORROR.

n
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A Passenger Train on the "A'onon' Route
Crashes Through a Weak Bridge Into
thc White Rivcr-The Wreck Takes Fire,
and six Persons Arc Burned Beyond
Rccosnition-A Number Wounded.
INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 1.-the south-boune
accommodation train on the Indianapolis &
Chicago Air Line due here at 1880 O'Clock
yeste rday morning net with a terrible acct
dent when seven miles from this city, at
Broad Ripple, where the railway crosses
the White River on q truss bridge of two
spans, each one hundred and fifty feet
in length. The engineer had gone to
the baggage car for a drink of water,
and the locomotive was in charge of the
fireman. When the locomotive reached the
center of the bridge the fireman felt the
structure sinking. He had his hand on the
throttle. which he opened, giving the loco
motive all the available steam. The en-
CINE sprang forward with great force,
breaking the coupling between the tender
and the baggage cal. The locomotive kept
the track, but the baggage and smok-
ing-cars and another coach dropped
through and piled up in a mass at
the foot of the piers, the smoking car being
partially telescoped on the baggage car. The
wreck was partially submerged, but the,
portion above the water Immediately took
fire from the stoves. The tiremen declares
that when he looked back after the locomo-
tive reached the south end of the bridge the
cars were on fire and smoke was oDScurlng
the scene.
News of the wreck reached this city in a
short time, and a wrecking train, with sur
rocyc o,,J n{lor 1cSictaJh.n was At once
made up and sent to Broad Ripple. On
reaching the wreck q chaotic scene was pre-
sented. The bridge and cars were yet
burning, and those present were so lacking
in presence OF mind as to be unable to eX-
tinguish the flames or afford relief to the
sufferers. The officials of the road went to
work vigorously and Systematically, and
in a short time the fire was eXtinguished
and the search for bodies was begun. Six
persons were either killed outright or burned
to death. The remains recovered were
burned and charred almost beyond recogni-
ton, being horribly mutiiated, and the only
means Of Identification was the finding of
incombustible trlnkets known to be the
property of the dead men. The following
is the list of the dead and wounded:
Killed.-John Brewer. engineer, Lafayette,
Ind. }. L. Ricketts,, baggage-master. New
Aihany; George 2rs Lowry, brakeman r.;fda for b !
tiS:", ,hu: ~ : u - n.nn,
MESSENGER, Indianapolis: John Bray, u stock
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. seman, Nohlesville:
right arm broken, and injured severely about
inc 1nd nea inix ana p intyern AVN win'h die "eT1 osenh,
Clayboussh, Frankfort: CIT on the head. At.
Peddigo, Frankfort. body bruised. w: P.
Howl, West1e!d; head badly cut. WW:,TI.
valsa and : L MI,e c Sr'll slirhtiy Injured 3.
Snyder, Trohoon, slightly injured.
The scenes at the wreck were extremely
distressing. The dead were in the ruins Of
the smoking and baggage cars, and these,
the one on top of the other, were in deer,
water. At one end of the smoking-car Law
a man with his skull crushed and life eS-
tinct, Across him, close to the red-ho stove.
Law Lynn Clark, a heavy timber binding one
lee immovablv. G. G.. FODDER, one of the
passengers, tried to find the ak with
which each car was nroyided. but if was on