Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1895-09-07
A RUNAWAY ENGINE.
Demolishes Train Loaded with Passen-
gers-Many Hurt.

gers-Many Hurt.
BROOKLYN, Sept. Am appalling
railroad accident occurred at 3;40
o'clock Monday afternoon near the
Woodland station of the Sea Beach
railroad. While train No. drawing
seventeen cars, which were crowded
to sutfocation by excursionists, was
standing at the Woodlawn station a
wildcat" engine came laundering
along the tracks in its wake and
crashed into the rear car, tel
escoptng it. The car was filed
came from New York. Many of the
people saw the engine come tearing
along and jumped and thus saved their
lives. The great majority of the pas
sengers were on board at the time,
among them a number of women and
children. A colored porter on the
platform, who saw the engine coming
along without fireman or engineer,
yelled to the passengers to make their
escape.
Engine No. 81 (the wildcat),
crashed into the rear car, smashing
it into kindling wood and bnrying men,
women aud children beneath it. There
was mad rush of surging humanity
from the doomed train. The groans of
the injured filed the air and the snort
ing and putting of the imprisoned
engine made deafening noise. For
some time the scene was a regular
pandemonium. Scarcely half dozen
people kept their heads or were able
to render assistance to the injured.
Patrolman Kelly, who was on duty at
the station, turned in several ambu-
lance calls and five ambulances from
the surrounding hospitals promptly re-
sponded.
In the meantime the woodwork of
the wrecked carriage caught fire and
was rapidly in a blaze. Four cars
were completely destroyed before
the train hands were able to
uncouple the cars. AS soon as it was
detached the engine drew the other
cars out of danger BY this time all the
passengers had disem barked and there
was the widest kind of excitement.
People rushed from nearby houses
and telephone and telegraph wires in
everv direction were put in motion to
call for aid to the injured. Four cas-
were telescoped by the force of the
collision.
1t is remarkable that no one was
killed. Over fifty persons were in
| jured, and il is feared several of these
will die
The engine which caused all the
mischief was used for shunting trains
at the Sixty-tifth street and Third
avenue depot of the Sea Beach
railroad 1t became unmanageable,
and dashed forward, throwing the
engineer and fireman from the cab.
There was no obstacle then to the
wildcat engine. 1t dashed along the
track at fearful rate of speed.
Train No. ; was in charge of Engineer
William Mullen and Fireman Harry
Jansen. They were on their way to
Couey Island
Police Captain Burford, of the Twen-
ty-fifth precinct, reports that engine
No. 8, in charge of Engineer Frank
Jansen and Fireman Arthur Ross, was
shunting cars at the depot when
it suddenly became unmanageabIe.
In spite of the efforts of the en-
gineer it was backing into an empty
car and he reversed the lever and the
engine jumped forward without con-
troll. Both men jumped off to save
their lives. The engine then dashed
along the tracks, thus causing the ac-
cident Jansen and Ross were arrest
ed. The superintendent OF the road
says the lever became jammed and the
only means the engineer and fireman
had to save their lives was by jumping
from the locomotive.