, 1888-05-15
SHATTERED TO ATOMS.
Terrible Railway Accident at
Fountain, Colo.
A Car Loaded With Naptha
Takes Fire.
$1,000 Pounds of Giant Powder
Explode.
Five Persons Killed and Others
Wounded.
Wreck on he Santa Fe.

DENVER, May 14.-News has reached
here that the ''Thunderbolt'' on the Santa
Fe collided with a freight train near Foun-
tain at 6 o'clock this morning. A car of
powder in the freight exploded, completely
wrecking the trains, instantly killing ten
and %woundlng many more. No particu-
lars.
CHICAGO, May 14.-Later advices from
Fountain, the scene of the Santa Fe rail
way accident, state that the Thunder
bolt" express was standing on the track
in front of the station when a caboose
and some cars, the brakes of which got
loose in some way, ran down from a side
track and struck the train with terrific
force. A car loaded with naptha ex-
ploded and set the train on fire. While
the men were e~ndeavoring to save the cars
and depot, another car containing powder
caught on fire and exploded, completely
demo6shng the depot, several dwellings
and a number of cars. One dwelling and
the depot were consumed. One woman
and two men were killed by the explos-
ion, and some twelve or fifteen persons
wounded, non very seriously. There is
a hole in the ground where thscar stood
about thirty feet in diameter and fifteen
feet deep. Two cars were burned and
olAbCCu, tOGGbiltl Will Il lOCOu1OIlNt, mOTC
or less wrecked. 1t is supposed that
tramps let off the brakes from the car.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
FOUNTAIN, Colo, May IA horrible
railway catastrophe occurred here at 2:45
this morning. At 2:41 the north bound
''Thunderbolt" stopped at the station for
orders. She had hardly come to a stand
still when a caboose with four loaded
freight cars which had broken away from
a through freight at Colorado Springs,
thirteen miles away, came dashlng down
the long grade at lightning speed, crash
ing into the express and piling the caboose
and first car in ruins on top of the engine
and baggage car. The car next to the
caboose was a huge tank of naptha, which,
being crushed, covered oil over the depot,
cars and adjacent buildings, caught on
fire and instantly everything was a sheet
of flame. The engineer and fireman es-
capped somewhat injured. The Pullman
and two day coaches of the passenger
were hastily detached from the burning
baggage car and ran down the track to
a distance from the fire, which had
now enclosed the depot building and
was rapidly approaching the last car of
the runaway freight, when an alarm was
given that this car was loaded with DOW
der and for everyone to run for their
lives. All who heard the warning at
tempted to obey, but had gone but a
short distance when 1900 pounds of
loaded, exploded, shaking the earth as
though by an earthquake Twenty
houses in the city are almost totally de-
stroyed, together with the new Baptist
church, which was blown from its founda-
ton and scattered over acres of ground.
Men and women were knocked senseless
and pieces Of broken rails. car wheels and
tlmhers were carried with terrific force for
half a mile. A number of freight cars
standing on a sidetrack were blown to
atoms.
The passengers in the ''Thunderbolt"
We're severely shaken up and a number
cut by pieces of glass from windows, but
none were seriously injured.
The yard of the Newton Lumber com-
pany took fire and was completely de-
stroyed. People standing a quarter of a
mile from the explosion were hit by fly
ing fragments and badly wounded.
The dead are: @. +. Smith, manager of
the Newton Lumber company; he was
trying to %exiinguish the flames in the depot
when the explosion occurred, was badly
wounded and died an hour later. A
pee oil iron was blown through his body,
making a hole two inches in diameter.
The burned remains of are unknown
were found underneath the engine after
the fire was ~extinguished. Lawrence
Wehcart, a German carpenter, while as
sisting to put out the fire in the lumber
yard, was struck on the head by a flying
timber, causing conclusion of the brain
and died in a short time. Mrs. We'd
ridge. while standing 600 yards from the
track, was struck on the head by a flying
: bolt and died in two hours. III. Hutchins,
a merchant, GO years of age, was standing
IN a door some distance away and was
struck by a bar of iron. He died this
afternoon.
The wounded number about thirty.
None of them will die, although all are
painfully injured.
The loss to the town, which is COM
pletely ruined, is estimated at $50. 600.
while the amount lost by the railroad
company is variously estimated at from
S75 900 to 800, 900.
All the wounded are residents of this
place except W. Knight of St. Louis and
J.. z. Mum of Tombstone, who had their
faces badly cut.