Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-09-11
HANGING BY HIS TOES.
John Dar0ski's Miraculous Escape
on Livermore Bridge.
HE IS HIT BY A FREIGHT TRAIN.
As he Falls He Catches Himself By His
Feet and Is saved.
THE STORY OF HIS WONDERFUL FEAT

The day of miracles is not past, especially
in railroad accidents. Yesterday John
Daroski performed a wonderful feat and
possibly saved his life. He is Bohemian,
aud was employed by the West Penn Rail-
road as O laborer.
The West Penn Is repairing the Liver
more bridge over the Conemaugh river.
The structure is single track affair, sew
eral hundred feet long and 80 feet above
the water YESTERDAY Daroski and num-
ber of other men were at work on the
bridge. The trains are compelled to run
very slowly over the river, and couse-
quently have to slacken their speed greatly
before the bridge is reached. This makes
their approach almost noiseless Soon after
the men started to work freight
train was seen coming west Everybody
but Daroski reached places of safety. In
their flight he was unnoticed and worked
on. with his face toward the setting sun.
His duty was underneath the bridge.
When the freight was fairly started over
the river then Daroski raised himself up on
the bridge His back was still toward the
approaching train, and he was all uncon-
scious of its coming. The train was but a
few feet from the man before the engineer
saw him.
Suspended by His Toes Over the River.
The engineer whistled and tried to stop
his engine, but the next second it was too
late. Daroski was hit, and down he went
through the bridge head first to death, so
the trainmen thought The train was
stopped as soon as the other side of the
river was reached, and the men ran down
the embankment to gather up the
dead mans body. They supposed they
would find it crushed and mangled on the
rocks below. The river at this point is
very low, there hardly being enough water
to cover its rocky bottom. To fall there
meant death of the most horrible nature
When the trains crew reached point
where they could see the river plainly
they could see nothing of Daroski.
They dashed out through the shallow water
to the point underneath where he had been
struck, but the body was not there One of
them looked up and so feet above hung
Daroski head downward. He was not
dead. His face was ghastly white and his
eyes were twice their natural size, almost
protruding from their sockets
How Daroski Was Rescued.
Hurriedly the rescuers rushed up on the
bridge and out to where Daroski was hang
ing by his toes over his rocky grave. The
sight was remarkable one, and it made the
blood of the savers run cold. There he
hung. To touch him would mean death, and
the party did not see how to get the Bo-
hemian up on the bridge. As he fell his
feet had caught between the ties,
and his toes were cling1ng to
one of the logs. They had only little
catch, but in some miraculous way he was
able to save himself from the rocks below.
If they would try to loosen his foothold, he
would fall. The man was rescued by tying
rope to his body, then puahing his toes
from their resting place and letting him
swing around right side up. Daroski was
then pulled up onto the bridge. He was
unconscious, but alive.
Daroski was taken to Salisbury and med
ical aid given him, He was revived and
his wounds were found to be some bad cuts
about the head. These the doctors said
would not result in his death. if he was not
hurt internally. He was brought to the
city and placed in hospital