River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1889-05-02
FOOD FOR FLAMES.

FOOD FOR FLAMES.
Railway wreck in Canada in Which
Two Persons Are Killed Instantly, and,
the Debris Taking Fire, Eighteen Others
Are Burned TO a Crisp.
HAMILTON Ont, April 20 - The east bound
limited express ON the Grand Trunk rail-
way which left Chicago az o'clock Satur-
day evening was wrecked about a mile west
0f this city shortly before 2 o'clock Sunday
morning. Twenty passengers were either
killed instantly or burned to death while
as many more received injuries more or less
serious
The accident occurred at the junction
cut The train, which consisted of two
baggage cars, one smoker, three passenger
coaches and four Pullman sleepeTs was
just approaching uestla over a
gully over 100 feet deep. when round
ing a sharp curve the locomotive lelt the
track, followed by the remainder Of
the cars except the two sleepers
az the rear Of the train The front baggage
ear jumped clean over the locomotive and
remained on the track about thirty Il e
from the wreck. The smoker and the psus-
senger coach following 1t We're jumbled to
gether in Shapeless mass, while the other
cars were scattered along the track and
were completely demolished Immediately
after the accident the hre from the loco
motive spread to the smoker and before
long the wreck was in a blaze. Most OF the
$50 passengers on the tram had either
craWlcd FROM the wreck or had pulled OUT
before the IRE reached the cars. The only
two bodies recognizable had also been
recovered, together with fourteen in
jured IL was not known how
many victims were LETT in the
wreck till the fire had been extinguished
when the work Of clearing away laid bare
the charred and unacceptable remains If
eighteen human beings IL is possible that
there may be other victims still remaining
In the debris. The list of recognized dead
and the injured follows:
KILLED-Rudoiph J. Ederer, supposed TO be
from Chicago, ms head was severed from the
body: L. ;. Quincy, traveller for Fred 5. Cur
nty. importer Of cutlery, lI6 Chambers street,
New York, head crushed in ana legs broker.
INJURED-Ham lton Clark, f46 West Ohio
street, Chicago, double fracture OF the right
leg, bruised badly, head cut and probably in
ternally injured, but VIII probably recover;
Anthony MaaZ, Of Martz, an Italian on his way
from Wisconsin 10 Italy, head cut, but not seri-
ously: Edwin Chapman, fireman. head badly
cut over ght eye, not seriously hurt; EEoeh
Kenyon, Of Loadou, Eng, a mining eng ueer,
ribs broken, not sc iously inju ed; & G. Az
am Leip,cy. % North 5angamon street, Chi
cago, H., ankle badly spra.ned; a. L. Doney,
Danyilie H., cut about head, not seriously;
George White. q German, on his way from lIli-
nois 10 Union HIl, right ear cut Of and scalp
wound not serious; Andrew J. Carpenter,
Yaukton. d. r., injured about the head but
not seriously; S T.. Young, 2s4 North avenue,
Chicago, very seriously injured; Joseph Morris,
East Sioux Falls ID. T., on his way to Clark
Island, Maine, scalp wounds bruised leg and
shoulders, net serious; A. Palmer, Hon, N.
Y, cut about the heads BaUgageman WALSH,
Niagara Fails, couar-bone fractured; Brake
man Beckh5m, Niagara Falls, leg supposed u
be broken and badly cut about face and head
There We're il3 passengers ON the train,
most of them on their way to New York 20
attend the centennial celebration Many
of them escaped from the broken cars be-
fore they caught fire. IL WAS not thought
that the disaster was a riOus one at that
time. Twelve injured passengers We're
taken from the wreck, and after physi-
clans had attended TO them they We're
sent to the hospital The body OF
Rudolph }. Eberer was found near
the foot of the embankment The
head was severed from the body aud was
living a few feet from it, Death was in
Simultaneous It looked as if he had tried
to escape by jumping from the smoker.
The next body recovered was that OF L. $.
Quincy of New York. 1t was near the sec
ond baggage car Ills head was crushed in
and his legs We're fractured.
The horror OF the disaster was increased
when the work of clearing away the wreck
was Wen under way The men were APP
palled When body after body was taken out
from under the debris. They We're burned
10 a crisp and not one of the eighteen
recovered could be recognized The.
charred remains Of three ladies Wees
among the number Only one of the bodies
had head and Its features were burned 80
frightfully that even it could not be identi-
fed 1t was impossible TO ascertain tho
names Of the uufortunates who were inn
prisoned in the cars and were roasted alive.
The sight was a horrible one as the work
men gathered what there was left of the
bodies from the ruins and packed them
away in shells
Up t. the time this dispatch was sent
twenty lead bodies have been taken from
the Wre * It is doubtful if the names OF
eighte ~ of those who were burned beyond
recog ,ition win be known for several days.
IL j. &c tain that ali were through paSsan-
gers. only "a few tickets were collected
for Canadian points.
Horrible scenes We're witnessed by the
OCCUPANTS OF the smoker and first passen-
ger ctL " 10 MtA+ 4 d ltAiitAtt tAlOtAli W -
cape An unknown man who was appar-
emily uninirred was burned to death. lie
was SO mextricably wedged in that he
could not be released before the flames
re achcd the rescuers who had
10 leave him to his fate Seven
cars were destroyed by fire, two
OF them sleeping cans. The water tank
which stood at this place was struck and
destroyed by the engine, and it was imnos-
sihle to extinguish or mitigate the coniia-
grafton Two of the sleeping cars in the
rear were uncoupled and drawn out Of
reach of the fire. Gallant efforts We're
made By all present TO rescue the vic
TINS and alleviate their pains Several la
dies were conspicuous by their skilliul d
energetic labors in binding up gashes
and wounds James Welsh, the baggage
man. who resides at Niagara Falls Ont,
was the hero OF To occasion working like
q Trojan ia spite of the pain he endured
from, his Ill EIDuofpd -hp7llpT