Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-12-15
FEARED FOR THE BRIDGE.
Workmen We're Apprehensive Before It
Fell
The Loss of Life In the Tragedy Near
Louisville Now Estimated BE-
tween Thirty and Forty.

LOUISVILLE, KY, Dec. ia great deal
has been said about the false work OF the
bridge that fell today being poorly con-
struSted
One Of the men who was ON the bridge,
and who fell. but miraculously escaped,
said. when seen in his bed at us Fulton
street: I'VE all feared that false work. 1t
Is the company's fault entirely. 1 do not
know how many were found. but many a
poor fellow Is at the bottom Of The river
now"
The false work of the bridge was braced
by timbers six by ten, resting on piling six
ty feet long, of which forty feet was with
out bracing. The piling had been in the
water a long time. and was doubtless, faul-
ty. Only few connecting links remained
to be fixed to complete the span when the
supporting structure gave way.
1t is said that the bridge people realized
that there was danger of a collapse. and
were pushing the work in order to COM
plete the connections and thus make the
moved. and the strain. together with the
high wind. proved too much for the de-
fective underpinning.
1t is the opinion that the piling was
faulty. The drift wood that had been ac-
cumulating above it. exerting a strong
pressure, is thought to have weakened It,
The Louisville Boat Club has it's boats
moored near Towhead Island, in the vicin-
ity of the bridge. The boatman in charge
OF the house says he saw the accident from
the beginning. As soon as the works began
to give away the men on the bridge ran
In either direction. and as soon as they felt
their support going. leaped for life There
was very little warning, he says, and many
who leaped never again came to the sur
face. Boatmen were informed that the
other span was also unsafe and many are
afraid to 90 near II.
The Louisville and Jacksonville Bridge
Company has been an unfortunate one.
The two accidents In the caissons three
years ago resulted in the death of sixteen
workmen and the present accident will
swell the list to proportions now unkr own
Besides this 1t has wrecked several for
tunes and was the cause Of a bank failure
The first work on the bridge was done
October 10. 1888. Since then, owing to
financial difficulties. work has been sus-
pended from time to time. The bridge was
originally to have been completed in eigh-
teen months, which would have been In
April. 1891. Already 100000 have been
spent on the structure.
Twelve Of the injured were removed to the
city hospital before noon. Four of them are
SO badly hurt that they are expected to die.
Their names are:
c. w. Cook. Mantilla Station, Ohio.
James Courtney. Louisville
]. G. Gourlock, Louisville
Charles Murphy, Louisville.
e. w. Brown. another Of the injured, has
broken arm and a number of bruises
Four OF the injured were taken to St
Joseph's Hospital, two to the Farmers
Home. twelve to Jacksonville.
1t is stated that a man named Dulaney,
who was an inspector of false work on the
Jacksonville bridge, but who recently en-
tered the employ Of the Kentucky and In
diana Bridge Company, stated some days
ago that the span was unsafe. and that he
had left the employ Of the Phoenix Com
pany on that account.
The Loss of Life.
Coroner Mccullough. who was on the
scene of disaster within an hour after it's
occurrence. said: Il do not yet know any
thing about the loss Of life but possibly it
will approach thirty, perhaps forty. Now,
thorough investigation will have to be
made, and it will take two or three days to
ferret out the facts and make an authorita-
tive report"
gauges at the United States weather bureau
indicated a velocity of twenty-four miles
Sergeant Burke says 1t might have been as
high as thirty miles on the river at the
altitude Of the bridge structure, but no.
greater than that.
Inspector Mcclure, who had charge of
the iron work, was on the stone pier. some
seventy feet in midair, when the unfortu-
nate accident came. He said to a United
Press representative: There are rumors
af1oat that the false work was built with
sn eye to economy, and therefore was not
sufficiently well constructed. 1 can say
that the false work was substantial as
any l ever saw in my life. The wind was
very strong and did the mischief in my
opinion. The accident should not be
charged to the negligence Of the company"