The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-02-12
BURNED And MANGLED.
Many Persons Cremated in q
Railroad Wreck.
A Woman's Children Almost
Roasted Before Her Eyes.

Within seven miles of the place where the
Broad Ripple Railroad disaster occurred an
otherMonon passenger train has been wrecked
and thirty-two of the eighty-fve persons
who were on the train bear themarks of the
accident. Six of them were killed, and Others
were fatally hurt The train left Chicago at
II :35 o'clock. It was within sixteen miles OF
Indianapolis, and was approaching the village
of Carmel, Ind, when the jarring of the cars
made the passengers aware that part OF the
train was off the track 4 rail had slipped
from its place or an axle was broken just as
bridge over a small stream, known as Will
kinson Creek, was reached. The locomotive
rushed ahead and, with the baggage and
smoking cars, passed over the bridge in
safety. But the structure fell with the third
car and the Pullman sleeping-car.
When the accident occurred the train was
behind time, and was running at unusual
speed. The engineer, who was i'll, had gone
back into one Of the passenger cars and had
placed in charge of his locomotive a sub
stitute, who got on the train at Frankfort.
Immediately after the fall of the bridge fire
broke out in the wrecked cars, and those
who were injured too badly to move were
burned to death.
The passengers who escaped injury at once
began giving such assistance as they could
render to their less fortunate companions.
and some of them did heroic work. One OF
the most active was j. P. Altizer, Chicago
commercial traveller who was in the third
car Another was Lewis Nauman, OF Cleve-
land, who, though himself badly injured.
worked for others until he fell unconscious.
Farmers soon gathered from the nelghbor-
hood, but the flames which spread over the
wreck prevented them from rescuing those
IN, fha fhaV
could do nothing more than aid the injured:
Some of these were found wandering about
in the fields near the scene Of the disaster, In
sane from their injuries and from excitement.
One of this number was Conductor Angeu,
who, with the blood streaming down MS lace,
was running round and round in circle, ana
when recalled to consciousness was SO weak
that he could not stand.
Mr.. Altizer, the Chicago man, who took
the lead in the relief work, was sitting Just
behind lady and her two children when the
train fell through the bridge. The woman
and children were talking and Laughing
when the first jar of the car was felt.
81 staggered to my feet" Mr.. Altizer says,
land found that was not seriously hurt.
Near me were three women piled In heaP;
The car was full of dirt, gravel and smoke. l
grabbed the woman on top Of the heap, and
dragged her through the broken timbers to
the outside and laid her on the bank. !
ran back to the car and was Joined
by a brave fellow, whose name
do not know. We each brought
out another woman, and the conductor, who
was caught under seat, was released: 1
could do no more. The car was on fire. Inc
little children, who five minutes before had
laughed so gleefully, were held down by the
roof the upturned stove roasting them to
death"
Nauman, the Cleveland commercial trav-
eler. was the other man to whom Altlzer
refers as having helped in the heroic work.
In dazed condition he rushed into the burn
ing car and tried to rescue the children,
whose cries, as the flames crept about them,
were agonizing. His efforts were futile, and
when he was driven from the car by the
flames he fell fainting, with his hands and
face badly burned. He has been unconscious
ever since The mother Of the children was
dragged from the car, her face and head
covered with blood: She started 'acS INTO
the car, crying pireously for he children,
and had to be forcibly led away.
Otto Gresham, who was slightly injured
and escaped with only part Of his clothing,
hurried to the telegraph Office at Carmel and
sent to Indianapolis the first news OF the dis
aster. A relief corps was sent to the wreck.
An early morning train from that city
reached the place an hour after the accident.
The passengers on this train at once
ioined the relief corps in the work Of pre-
pairing the injured for the trip to the city.
Nothing could be done for the dead and their
bodies we're not taken from the wreck until
4 clock in the afternoon. The injured were
taken to indianapolis on the relief train '.t
11:2O o'clock. Several Of the sufferers We're
taken to St. Vincent's Hospital, among them
Lewis Naurnan, Of Cleveland, who received
probably fatal injuries in trying to rescue
victims Of the wreck.
When the relief train was approaching the
CITY, an old man, Henry Muston, in attempt
ing to board it, fell under the wheels and was
Ir;fiad