The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1895-12-04
PLUNGED D7O7HEIRDEATB
FrightfuI Accident to a Crowded Street
Car in Cleveland.
THROUGH AN OPEN DRAW.

The Car Was Going Over the Central Via.
duct-.-rhe Gate Was Open, and the Car
Fell 100 Feet Into the Cuyahogs
River---Some One Made an Awful Mis-.
Understanding for the Bodies.
A heavy electric motor car containing be-
tween twenty and thirty passengers went
through the draw of the Central Viaduct In
Cleveland, Ohio, at 7.45 o'clock p. m. and
dropped one hundred and one feet to the
river below. Every passenger in the car was
either killed or injured. 1t is horror the
like Of whid4 had never occurred at Cleve-
land before. Nineteen persons met death
instantly.
The Central Viaduct, where the accident
occurred. is long stone and iron structure
which crosses the Valley Railroad and the
Cuyahoga River and connects Jennings ave-
nue. on the south side with Central avenue
on the east. The draw was open for a tug
drawing schooner which was about to pass
beneath the bridge. As usual. the gates
were closed on both sides Of the draw and
danger lights were displayed to guard
against accidents.
An electric car came along from the east
toward the south side. It belonged to the
Cedar and Jen nings avenue branch OF the
Consolidated line, and had over a score Of
passengers, a conductor and motorman
aboard, At what Is known as the "dersil-
Ing SWITCH" about 200 feet from the draw.
the conductor alighted, as Is the custom of
all conductors, to see II all was right. The
car came to standstill and the motorman
waited for orders.
The conductor, for some unaccountable
reason, failed to see the red signal Of danger
or the closed gates, and slgnaled to the
motorman, John Rodgers, to come ahead.
The motorman turned on the electric cur.
rent, the conductor jumped aboard the car
and at considerable speed the vehicle neared
the death trap.
A few feet from the draw 1t dawned upon
the notorman that the draw was open, and
he threw the handle and applied the brakes.
The bridge captain, seeing the approaching
car. shouted like madman, but the car was
already on the down grade to the draw, and
the brakes would not hold 1t on the slippery
rails.
The motorman. realizing his danger, leaped
off the front platform, ran down the viaduct
In the direction of Central avenue, and dis
appeared in the darkness. At the same In
slant two male passengers jumped OF the
rear platform and escaped death.
The car reached the closed iron gates and
In an instant the crash OF swapping iron and
breaking glass was heard. This alarmed
the conductor, who had stepped inside, and
he was seen to make a dash for the rear
door, but he was too late. A second later
the car swayed on the edge OF the awful
space. steadied and toppled over.
The car struck upon a projection OF piles
in the abutment beneath the draw, then
turning and collapsing 1t fell into the river
below, scattering its passengers In all dt-
rections and breaking the towline between
the tug and schooner that were passing.
A few groans were heard by the men who
happened to be on the docks below. Those
who witnessed the accident called to- the
men on the tug to pick up the people, but
only two passengers one man and one wo-
man-were rescued.
The first person rescued from the wreck
was Patrick Looley. who was taken to the
Cleveland General Hospital.
"The crash, which resulted in the precipi-
tating Of the car over the yiaduct, came
without moments waring," he said. I'VE
went down like flash, the car strikngso
hard obstruction before We plunged into the
water. This crash knocked me senseless,
and remember nothing more until was
taken out OF the water"
Only part fthe roof Of the car was vis-
rigged up raft and took their yewl from
which they f1shed with pike poles for the
bodies. eight of which were taken from the
water without much trouble.
Thousands Of citizens went to the scene Of
the accident, crowded upon the great bridge,
and went down to the valley below to get
sight Of the rescue work.
The verified list of the dead Is as follows:
Mrs. Minnie G. Brown; Miss Bessie Davis;
Harry W. Foster; Mrs. A. A. Hoffman; Ger
tie Hoffman, three years old: Harvey Hof-
man, seven years old: Edward Hoffman; Louis
F. Huletz, mail carrier; James Mclaughlin;
Curt Lopehne or Clemens, Henry W. Meek
lenburg; Marie Mettgen; Mrs. Martha
Palmer: Augusta Sarinski; Mrs. John A.
Sauernheimer. At the hour this list was
given out four persons known to have been
aboard the car were missing, and 1t was be-
lieved they had perished.
Augustus Rodgers. the motorman In charge
Of the car, was arrested. Hestated that Con-
ductor Hoffman gave him the signal to go