The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1891-05-14
PLUNGED INTO FIRE.
A Horrible and Fatal Accident Happens
to q Pennsylvania Logging
Railroad.
1t is Thrown From the Track Into the
Midst Of a Great Pile of Burning
Logs.

CoUDERspoRr. Pa, May IL. TO. night the
pretty little lumber and farming towns of
Austin, Costello, Galeton and Moore's Run.
IN Potter county. are on the verge of a
panic, two, especially being threatened with
humiliation from. fires that seem to form
an impenetrable wall on every side.
For several days past the skies have been
lighted up with fires apparently in every
direction. But little fears were entertained
by people living in the towns as those
! threatened and in danger were farmers in
the country districts, or lumber camps in
Size midst OF tho blazing forests. In spite
OF every effort, however, the flames crept
steadily in snaky lines of smoke and flame
toward the helpless towns until it was seen
the people must fight back the flames or
have their very houses burned down over
their heads
AT Moore's run, on the Sinnemahoning
Valley road, q train load of seventy-fiye
willing rleE sent out from Austin Sunday
night had been fighting back the fire by
every conceivable means. They made
trenches, piled up earth, and lighted back
fres but were finally obliged to retreat.
The men hastily boarded the train, and
started to make a run to another point,
when it was ton;,d they were hemmed in
by the forest fire on one side and
HUGE sK1pwAY OF BURNING LOGS
on the other. It was finally decided to dash
past the burning skidway, and the engineer
and fireman. with faces covered with damp
ened cloths and their hands and arms
wrapped in wool, mounted the little engine
and pulled out through the wall OF fire.
"a txy-fi
groups on the flats for protection, or Law on
their faces on the floor. AS the blazing fur
mace of logs was approached the heat be-
came unbearable, and the smoke so blind
ing 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, terrible thing
occurred. The engineer had forgotten that
such great heat would surely spread the
rails and he pulled the throttle wider in
the hope OF sooner escaping from a tor
ment of heat and smoke. Then there was
lurch, an ominous heaving, and a shrek
OF despair as the train toppled over into
the hell of fire beneath.
A scene ensued never to be forgotten by
those who escaped, though every man will
bear to his grave mark of that awful mo-
ment. The cars caught fire like so many
paper playthings, and the men Within
half blinded and scarcely realizing any,
thing except that they were being slowly
ROASTED TO DEATH,
struggling fear:ully to regain the track,
where safety lay tor time at least. Those
uninjured from the fall and only smarting
from the pain of intense heat, Lravelv
turned their burned; blackened hands to
aid their more unfortunate fellows.
Atthis hour it is impossible to secure de-
! tails, though enough is known of the scene
that followed the hurting of the struggling
mass of men into tho furnace of flames to
say that its like had never occurred before
Supt. Badger, of the Sinnemahoning Val
ley road, was in charge of the relief train,
and had worked the hardest of all to save
the properties of others. When the train
was ditched and rolled over so suddenly he
must have been injured so as to be unable
to help himself, and, owing to the smoke
and panic, he was not found until too late
Jammed in the wreck, he had evidently
burned to death.
At this time-9:3O p. MT is known that
six others also miscrably persisted at once,
party were badly burned, many probably
fatally, owing to fears that they inhaled the
flames that seemed to fairly spring into
their faces. Seven others of the pa rty are
missing and their late is unknown. though
they are likely in the charred wood of the
logs or train.
RELIEF PARTIES
started for the scene as soon as the fearful
news spread, many male relatives of the
men injured insisting on accompanying
the train, though they will hardly be able
to reach the place Of the wreck unless the
fires have burned themselves out.
Owing to the great devastation done to
everything in the way of the fire communi-
cation is badly interrupted, and 1t is impos-
sible to learn the names of the neil burned
or those still missing.
feet of hemlock logs and timber and Is. 600
cords OF valuable bark have already been
destroyed, and the fires are raging without
any appreciate diminution.
This evening the people are praying Tor
rain, as it seems nothing but drenching
will quench the flames that have grown so
fierce they must either be extinguished by
the floods Of heaven or burn out for lack OF
material.
The timber lands are owned by Goodyear
Bros. of Buffalo and are situated in Potter
about 100000 acres The films ex-
tensivc sawmills are located at Austin and
are capable Of turning out 1000, 600 feet OF
lumber per day. The Goodyears built the
SinnemahQning Valley railroad some years
ago to carry their lumber to the Western
New York and Pennsylvania roads.