The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-05-12
IN THE FLAMES.
A Train Attempts to Run the
Gauntlet of Fire,
But the Heated Rails Spread, it Topples, Turns
Over and is COnsumed-Many
Perish-Some Escape.

CoUDERsPoRT, Pa, May u.-To-night
the little towns Of Austin, Costello, Gale
ton and Moores Run, in Potter county, are
on tie verge of panic, two especially being
threatened with aunihHatien from fires
that seem to form an impenetrable wall on
every side. For several days past the
skies have been lighted up with fires in
every direction, and the flames crept
steadily towards the HELPLESS towns until
it was seen the people must fight At
Moore's Run, on the Sinnemahoning road,
train load of seventy five willing men
sent out from Austin Sunday night have
been lighting the fire by every conceivable
means. They made trenches, piled up earth
and lighted back fires, but were finally
obliged to retreat. The men hastily boarded
the train and started to make the run to
another point, when it was found they were
hemmed in by forest fires on one side and a
huge skidwayof burning logs on the other 1t
was finally decided to dash past
the burning skidway and the engineer
and 'tiremen, their faces covered with
damp cloths and arms and hands covered
with wool dashed through the wall of fire
The seventy five exhausted men gathered
in groups on the fats for protection or Law
on their faces on the floors. AS the blazing
furnace OF logs was approached, the heat
became unbearabie, and the smoke so
binding and sitting the men were obliged
to cover their mouths with cloths Just
opposite the millions of feet of burning
logs, where the heat and smoke
and flame were the greatest, a
terrible thing occurred The engineer
had forgotten that such great heat would
surely warp the rails Suddenly there was
lurch an ominous heaqing, and shrek
of despair as the train toppled over into
the hell of fire beneath A scene ensued
never to be forgotten by those who es-
capped, though every man will bear to the
grave the mark of that awful moment The
cars caught fire like so many playthings.
and me men within were half blinded
and scarcely realizing anything except
that they were being slowly roasted to
death, struggled fearfully to regain the
track where safety lay for time at least.
Those uninjured from the fall and only
smarting from the pain of the intense heat,
bravely turned their burned, blackened
hands to aid their more unfortunate fell
lows. At this hour (1Op NJ it is inpos
sible to secure details, though it is known
that Superintendent Badger, of Sinnema-
honing valley railroad, who was in charge
of the train, went down under the wreck
age and was undoubtedly burned to death
Six others also miserably persisted at once
or died soon afterward, and thirty others
of the party were badly burned, many prob
ably fatally, having inhaled the flames
Seven others of the party are missing and
their fate is unknown, though they are
likely in the charred wood of the logs or
train. The rem ainder of the party saved
themselves by lying down in the
creek Relief parties started as soon
as the fearful news spread, but will
hardly be able to reach the place of the
wreck unless the fires have burned them
selves out. Owing to the great devasta-
ton done to everything in the way of the
fire, communication is badly interrupted
and it is impossible to learn the names of
the men burned or missing. As to the
damage, 1t is known 4O,000.000 hemlock
log timber, and $4,000 cords of valuable
bark have already been destroyed and the
fires are rcging without any ap-
preciable diminution. People are
praying for rain as it seems nothing
but drenching will quench the flames a
million beacon lights seem to be burning
from every mountain and hill side.
and the air is so oppressive that
many workers faint from exhaustion.
and are dragged away from the flame
that has done nothing as yet but steadily
advance. Twelve sold miles of timber in
one district have already burned, and the
end is not vet.