The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-09-03
No ONE At THROTTLE,
A Wild Engine Dashed Into
Crowded Train.
FIFTY PEOPLE SERIOUSLY In
JURED IN THE WRECK.

The Train Was Standing at the station and
tho Runaway Crashed Into the Rear
Cars TeIescoping Several and Setting
Fire to the Wreckage.
Coney Island, N. Y, September "A
wild cat engine on the New York Sea
Beach railroad ran away from Bay Ridge
depot shortly after three this afternoon
and crashed into the rear car of the three
o'clock afternoon train which was on it's
way to Coney Island. and was standing
at Woodlawn Park waiting for the
Catholic Knights picnicers to get off at
Woodlawn Park. The rear car of the for
ward train was badly smashed and more
than forty persons were injured. The
wild cat engine Immediately caught fire
and burned to ashes. The injured were
removed from the wrecked train and
carried over and laid on the grass, where
they moaned with pain, waiting the
arrival of medical attendance. Ambu-
lances were summoned from Brooklyn
and Coney Island, and the greatest ex-
citement prevailed. Some of the injuled
were removed in wagons to nearby
cottages and farmhouses. The police
had a great deal of trouble in keeping the
large crowd in any kind of order.
Brooklyn, N. Y, September "A
serious railroad accident occurred at 8. 10
this afternoon on the Woodlawn station
of the Sea Beach railroad. While Engine
No. 3, drawing seventeen cars, crowded
with excursionists bound from Coney
Island. was standing at Woodlawn station
wild engine came Numbering down and
crashed. Into the rear car telescoping it.
The car was full of passengers, most OF
whom came from New York. Many OF
the people saw it come tearing along and
Jumped from the train and thus saved
their lives. The great majority of the
passengers were on board at the time,
among them many women and children.
A colored porter on tthe platform, who
saw the engine coming along with out
fireman or engineer yelled to the pas
sengers and many escaped. The wild
engine crashed into the rear Car smashing
it into k1ndling wood and burying the
men women and children beneath it.
Four cars were telesc. ped by the force OF
the collision, and ali the others were
damaged. There was mad rush of
surging humanity from the doomed
train. The groans of the injured filled
the air and the snorting and putting OF
the imprisoned engine made deafening
noise. For some time the scene was q
regular pandemonium. Scarcely half
dozen people kept their heads or were
able to render assistance. Patrolman
Kelley, who was on duty turned in sew
eral ambulance calls and five mbulances
from the surrounding hospitals promptly
responded. The wrecked cars caught fire
and were quickly mass of flames.
1t was at first thought that at least ten
persons were killed outright. The people
rushed from nearby houses and the tele-
phone and telegraph wires in every
direction were put in motion to call for
aid to the injured.
Engine No. 6, which caused all the
damage was used for shunting trains at
the 65th and Third avenue depot of Sea
Beach railroad. 1t became unmanageable,
owing to the lever becoming jammed and
the engineer and fireman Jumped from
the cab to save their lives. There was no
obstacle then to the wild engine, and it
rushed along the track at fearful rate
of speed. About fifty were injured, but
no one killed OF the injured thirty eight
were taken to the hospitals. 1t was said
late tonight at the hospitals that none of
the injured would die. Engineer Jansen
and the fireman Of the wild engine were
arraStad /,