The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-06-03
DYNAMITE DISASTER.
Frightful Explosion of Blasting
Powder OH the Hudson.
A Car Containing Thirty Laborers
Blown to Atoms.


drawn by construction engine was blown
to atoms shortly before noon few days ago,
at place about ons and quarter miles
south of Tarrytown, n. :.,on the. New York
Central and Hudson River Railroad. A
gang of worxmen, chiefly Italians, were on
the car; and Of the number thirteen were
killed, ten were injured aud five, on the day
after the tragedy, were missing. 1t was
thought that the bodies of the latter were
thrown into the river. Efforts were made
to recover them. The bodies Of several Of
the dead Italians have neither been claimed
nor identified. Some Of the injured OF the
same nativity have been recognized. Three
of the wounded were taken to local hos
pital at Tarrytown; the rest were broughtto
Bellevue Hospital in New York City. where
they are being properly cared for.
Had the explosion occurred while heavily
loaded pass enger train was passing the work
train the loss Of life might have been still
more appalling. No trustworthy lntorma-
ton was obtainable the day following the &C
cident as to the direct cause Of the explosion.
The most intelligent theory advanced, how
ever. is to the effect that Illuminating caps
were carelessly loaded with the dynamite
cartridges, and that in some inexplicable way
one or more Of these caps was ignited, caus
ing the explosion.
A portion OF Tue Vrdck Was Uoin up ouo
| traffic on the road was temporarily sus-
pended. No damage resulted to surrounding
property beyond the breaking of few panes
| Of glass though the report of the explosion
| was heard many miles from the scene on
both sides of the river.
Following is a list of the dead: John Nc
| Carthy, timekeeper. twenty-two years old,
| North Tarrytowp. Frank Morris, water.boy,
| eighteen, Tarrytown, blown into the river.
ISL hra fhirtv.Cw0 SlnQ
| Sing, blown into the river. Lucino Rain
! iere, laborer. Raffalle Taniccarle, laborer.
| Hito Scaceite, laborer. Seven Italians,
names unknown, thrown in all directions and
badly burned, but not much mutilated.
The train consisted merely of an engine,
| driven by George Herrick, and fat car, IN
charge Of John Connors, conductor. On the
car We're twenty-four cases of Ajax powder,
loaded at Ludlow's, and intended for use IN
blasting away the rock for third track just
below the station At Tarrytown. About
thirty men were aboard, mostly Italians who
were to do the work. Besides Connors and the
Italians there we're J. Smith, the brakeman;
Edward Fiunegan, the foreman OF the gang.
and Frank Morris. the water.boy. AT
Hoge's Point the road maSes sharp bend
and q fiagman is stationed there, where he
can watch the track in both directions.
"Gus" Deermau was on duty and was
watching the train as it approached him,
when he saw an Italian jump off. The man
! struck on his head and was thrown some
distance on the rebound.
The train kept on its way and passed
Deerman, who ran toward the Italian. BE-
fore he could reach him and while the train
was scarcely 100 feet away he heard ter.
rife explosion. Looking back, be saw the
air filled with smoke, dust and flying debris
of all kinds. The powder had in soma way
ignitea, and the car engine, tender, passen-
gers. and even the roadbed, were blown sew
eral hundred feet in all directions.
The flash of the explosion WIS plainly seen
from the station at TarrytowR, about one
mile distant and Officer Smith: who was on
duty there, John A. Liant, editor, David
Whalen, brakeman. and hundreds OF 9TH
ers rushed to the spot. They found the
roadbed blown out for distance Of twenty
or twenty-five feet, rails twisted into ell
sorts of shapes, the car almost completely
aunihjlated, and the bodies OF the Vlctlns
strewn all about
Five minutes after the explosion the smoke
cleared away. At it had all blown out
over the river. A few minutes later the work
men who had been cutting stone by the track
three-quarters of a mile north came runntns p
up. They had recovered from the shock. REQ
pie from the Tarrytown station came, TOO,
headed by Chief Of Police Charles Nossiter.
They saw dead or wounded men lying
everywhere. Fifty feet south of tue spot
where the explosion had occurred was a
pile of human bodies tangled together,
legs and arms and heads sticking out of the
pile here and there. Near by was another
pile, but not so large as the otner'
Two bodies aoated in the river 100 feet from
the shore. The steam escape valve on the
top of the engine held one body impaled, the
arms and head hanging Oh one side and the
legs on the other. The ground was covered
with bits of clothing and pieces OF flesh.
Some of the wounded were lying one on
top of another, shrieking for mercy
and groaning and begging to
be put out of their misery. The ground 1or
200 feet up and down the trecS was we WEI
with blood. The car had disappearsa a.
Only bit Of it hung over the stone EN-,
bankment along the shore. The brake head
on which Brakeman Cullen had been sitting
was there and uninjured. 1t was not even
bent while the heavy steel rails were twisted
into indescribable shapes and broken,
The ties for the length Of two rails were
missing. There was hole fifteen feet across
in the ground where they had been. The en-
gine stood dismantled. A piece OF sheet IRON
Mas eli that was left of the tender. The
wneels even had disappeared. One steel axle
four inches in diameter, which had been
snapped in two, was lying on the ground
near the hole
A piece of wheel was fast to the end OF it.
The cab of the engine had been torn off and
had disappeared entirely. The smoke stack
and pilot were gone About all Of the ex.
terror machinery that remained intact was
the safety valve with the impaled man.
Two telegraph poles had been knocked
over into Hoes Pond, and the wires dangled
in the water. The fence which had sepa
rated the company's property from the
pond was missing for 200 feet. The river
and the pond were full Of floating debris.