St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-12-12
RUNAWAY CABLE CARS
Collide With d Train Ahead
With Frightful Mo-
mentum.
FIRE ADDS ITS HORRORS.
Many Of the Injured Narrow
ly Escape Crema-
ton.

CHICAGO, Dec. LIN collision be-
tween cable cars in the Washington
street tunnel this evening, one man was
fatally hurt, fifteen more people were
seriously injured, and score Of others
more or less bruised. The cars were
set on fire by the stoves, and for time
there was fearful panic about the
wreck. Those most seriously injured
are:
Morris Smith. internally injured and
both legs broktn-he will die; George
Newman, head and face badly cut;
William Joyce. right leg broken and
severe buses; James Mcdonald. left
side of face crushed and head cut; John
Frems, left leg twisted, badly bruised
about hips, nose broken; James
McGinty, seriously bruised about face
and shoulders; Mrs. Thomas Belman,
seriously bruised, head and face
cut. Mrs. George Reiss, head hurt, and
temporarily deranged by the shock.
Mrs. William Parker, both ankles
broken and severe bruises. John Dono-
hue, right leg broken, head and face
cut. William MUlrooney. teeth knocked
out and jaw broken. G. B. Burtle,
head and face crushed. A. A. Aikens,
nose crushed and body bruis eS. Mrs.
EStelle Vieman. in. ured about should
erS and hips. Harry Goddard, face
and head cut and legs hunt.
L. II. Moran, gripman on
Milwaukee avenue grip car,
Nellie Scott, head cut and badly bruised;
r. loo rof fnh
and teeth knocked out; Miss Olga
Schroeder. fingers smashed and head
cut; n. Patterson, left arm broken;
John Speth. face lacerated and nose
smashed fiat; NJ. Nelson, knee cap torn
off and badly bruised.
In addition to these there was large
number Of people who sustained pain
full Injuries, and smashed fingers,
knocked out teeth, spralned ankles and
wrists were very numerous.
Both the West Madison street and the
Milwaukee avenue cable lines run
through the tunnel, and at the time the
accident occurred 6:30 p. m.) all the
west-bound cars are jammed to suffoca-
tion with people returning from busi-
ness on the south side. A Madison
street cable train, consisting of a grip
car and two trallers, was twO-thirds of
the way down the incline toward the
bottom or the tunnel when a cable train
OF the Milwaukee avenue line, also con-
slstlng of three cars, entered the tun-
mel. Almost Immediately after starting
down the slope Gripman Moran, of tn 6
Milwaukee avenue car, lost his hold
on the cable and the cars leaped
forward down the steep incline
at a fearful speed. Moran rang his
alarm bell, and he and the conductors
CAt q hr.1 y fkas.f
utterly unable to hold it, and, Just as the
bottom of the tunnel was reached. the
runaway cars struck the Madison ave.
nue. train with awful force, smashing
its rear car into splinterS and demOlish-
ing the Milwaukee avenue grip car
Both cars were piled up i'll heap, from
which such passengers as were capable
of moving crawled out, battered and
bleeding. Each of the wrecked cars
held about seventy five passengers, and
that number of them were not in>
Stantly killed was wonder.
10 add to the horror Of the accident
one Of the wrecked cars caught fire and
began to blaze furiOusly. All the peo-
pie injured in this car had been re-
| moved before the fire became danger
| Ous, however. A number of people
were pinioned in the wreck, and others
were held fast between the wreckage
and the walls of the tunnel. All of
them were quickly rescued, and the fire
was eXtingulshed by all engine company
which responded to the alarm. The
cause Of the accident was the breaking
| of the grip of the Milwaukee avenue
grip car. With this out of order, there
was nothing except the brakes to mold
| the train, and they were powe rless
| against tile heavy loaded cars.
al
| pital at IL O'Clock.
John Donohue, another of the in
jured, died i'll the county hospital al
| midnight.