Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1894-01-25
FIFTEEN ARE KILLED.
FRiGHTFUL RAILWAY WRECK IN
NEW JERSEY.
Two Trains ON the Lackawanna and West
ern Collide-Cars Filled with Persons
En- Route to New York to Work Are
Smashed Into Pieces.
s,rnal. Could Not BE Seem.

Signals Could Not Be Seem
There was a frightful accident on
Monday morning on the west side OF
the Hackensack bridge, on the Morris
and Essex branch of the Delaware,
Lackawanna and Western Railroad.
The train which leaves Roseville, N.
j., at eight o'clock crashed into the
rear Of the Dover express, telescoping
two cars. Fifteen passengers in these
two cars were killed and at least twen-
ty-five terribly injured.
Both of the trains that came into
collision were bound for the Jersey
City ferry landing. The Dover ex-
press, which is due at Jersey City at
| 800 o'clock, was steaming slowly over
| the meadows toward the draw-bridge
over the Hackensack River. The fog
was so dense that the engineer could
| not see fifty feet ahead, and was pro-
ceeding with extreme caution. ~he
| train hands had distributed on the
track in the rear of the train warning
| torpedoes, and all precautions were
taken to prevent the Orange local
| train, following few moments behind
the express, from running into the lat
| ter train.
Disregarded the Signals.
The engineer of the Orange train
either did not hear the torpedoes or
see the signals or else ignored them,
| for just as the engineer of the Dover
express reached the bridge the Orange
| train, which was running at full speed,
crashed into it with terrific force. The
| engine of the Orange train smashed
| the two rear cars of the Dover
train into pieces and plowed over
| the passengers, who by the force
of the collision had been hurled
from their seats, only to be crushed to
death by the wheels of the Orange en-
| gine. The rear car on the Dover train
| was combination smoker and baggage
| car, and the one in front of that an or
dinary day coach. Every seat in both
coaches was occupied by persons on
their way to work in New York, and a
number of passengers were in the bag
gage car. The passengers in the smoker
| hs1 little chance to escape. They
| had no warning OF the crash. Those
in the day coach had a better opportu-
nifty. They plunged through the win
| dows and crowded to the front doors,
with the guard of the Orange train
engine only a few feet away. Most of
those killed and injured were in the
smoking car, and as the great engine
crashed into the car among them they
| guard and those who were killed were
crushed to death, literally ground to
| pieces.
| Shrieks OF Injured and Dying.
When the engine was finally stopped
the shrieks of the passengers and the
means of the injured aud dying filed
the air, mingled with which was loud
| hiss of escaping steam. 1t was some
moments before those who were unhurt
had sufficiently recovered enough pres
ence of mind to turn their attention to
the injured, dying and dead. Almost
| every person in the two rear cars was
injured, some frightfully and others
seriously. How many were killed could
not at first be learned. The widest
reports of the extent of the disaster
were soon current. The only warning
| that the passengers in the rear car
had came from half a dozen men who
were on the rear platform. A brake
man who had been sent back to warn
the Orange train rushed up to the men
| on the platform less than 100 feet
ahead of the oncoming engine of
death and called out: Jump for your
! lives"
| All of the passengers on the plat
form escaped. The baggage-handler
In Jne DaRRdRe-cdr anu Jne express
messenger also heard his warning cry
and sprang through the side door just
as the engine of the local train
which, according to the trainmen, was
running at rate of twenty miles an
hour crashed into it.
1t was fully five minutes after the
crash before the passengers on the two
trains could realize the full extent OF
the catastrophe. Then came the great
| est confusion imaginable. The train
hands led the passengers to the work
| OF rescue. Three mangled bodies were
| pulled out of the wreck within ten
minutes. The passengers crowded
about and rendered valuable service in
caring for the injured. Several men
who attempted to assist tainted upon
seeing the sickening condition Of the
bodies dragged out from under the
wreck.
A call was sent to Jersey City for
doctors, ambulances and collins. A re-
lief train was sent to the scene from
Hoboken, and thirty physicians arrived
from that place and Jersey City. One
by one the injured were taken out and
| placed in the cars. They we're sent to
the Christ and st. Mary hospitals in
Hoboken. The bodies of the dead
were removed to the morgue. Coroner
| Volk had been notified and took charge
| of them as soon as he arrived.