The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1897-07-09
THE OMAHA MORNING PASSEN-
GER RUNS INTO A WASHOUT,
Tina Accident Occurs on the Prairie
Just North of the City. Engine
Mail, Baggage and Two Day
Coaches Leave the Track. mo One
Seriously Injured. lone Tail Clerk
Badly Scratched Around the Face,
1.-The Engineer Badly Shaken Up.

on the Omaha road, ran into a wash |
out on the prairie just north of the
city, between the sheep sheds and the
St. Louis road, Tuesday and was
badly wrecked, though fortunately
no one on the train was seriously in
lured. One mail clerk was cut and
scratched some on the face and head
but escaped3 without anything of
serious nature, and the express mes
senger had one hand somewhat
bruised and received a scratch on one
ankle. The fireman also suffered a
sprained ankle. Farther than this,
with the exception of severe shak-
ing up, no injuries are reported,
The heavy rain that occurred in the
night washed out some twenty feet
of dirt under the track, leaving the
rails and ties in their usual position,
and nothing wrong was noticed by
the engineer until the engine was
within a few feet Of the washout and
it was too late to stop. The washout
had doubtless but shortly occurred, as
within an hour previous, two heavy
freight had passed over it all right.
Just previous to this the section men
had been over the track and all was
right, but water had been noticed
flowing over the track some 600 yards
north of where the accident occurred
by the incoming freights and the pas
senger was ordered to proceed slowly
through that section because OF IL.
The engine went down on striking
the washout and leaving the track
ran across the right of way diagonally
nearly to the fence into the mud, the
drive wheels blowing in to the depth
of two or three feet, The tender
turned completely over and up against
the rear of the engine. The track at
this point is some three or four feet
above the level of the prairie.
The mail and baggage cars and two
day coaches left the track. but did
not 90 off the embankment. The two
first cars were torn from the trucks
and the trucks from the forward enc
of the mail car were showed back
toward the rear end, letting the for
ward end down, andi it tore loose al
the ties aud showed them along in
bunch for nearly the length OF the
car. The force from the sudden stoI
was so great that the cars were driver
together so that the space between
them was only about the width of th'
platform of one car. The wonder il
that in such wreck, greater injur!
was not inflicted upon those on board
The sleeping cars did not leave TIT
track. They we're brought back t.
the city, and the passengers in tn
day coaches transferred back b.
teams. The sleepers were attaches
to, and the day coach passengers wer
put aboard the seven o'clock loca
passenger for st. Paul, and sent t
Kasota over the Northwestern track
A track has been built around tn
wreck today. and Supt. Spencer e'
pected to have trains running over
by six o'clock this evening. The Wor
of cleaning up the wreck will be CON
menced tomorrow. Today trains hav
been run to Kasota over the @. q \
w. tracks.
The sleepers attached to the trai
were filled mostly with Elks going
the twin cities, and ninety-two
them took breakfast at The Sau
paugh.
In view of the wreck to the traiI
the passengers and trainmen had
most fortunate escape from the IL
Fiction of serious injuries.