New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-04-03
KILLED IN SIGHT OF MANY.
A MAN SLOWLY CRUSHED TO DEATH BY
AN ELEVATED ENGINE
MINISTER'S EXTREME JUNCTION on TIE
TRACKS WHILE TRAINS ARE PASS
ING-A DRAMATIC SCENE on
THE THIRD AVE
NUE. ROAD
NUE. ROAD.

NUE. ROAD.
For more than half an hour last night man
lay pinned under engine in front OF the eie-
waited railroad station at Eighty y-nlnth-st. and
Third-ave.. and was slowly crushed TO death'
while those who would have aided him looked
helplessly on and waited for n relief train the
man was Patrick Flanagan, ticket agent al the
station. who had been knocked down as he was
crossing the tracks. few minutes after the en-
gne had been raised the man died.
Flanagan was thirty-two years old. unnar-
ried. and lived with his parents at Woodlawn
He was always considered careful and a faith
ful worker. Last night he was late In arriving
AT the station and. instead Of going down the
stairs and crossing underneath the railroad to
his post. az he had done for three months, ne
attempted to cross the tracks AS he started
across at a run a train rolled into the station
over the uptown track. The ticket-chopper sa"
Flannigan's danger and shouted to him to go
back. but he paid no attention. He had placed
his hands on the station platform. and drawn
himself partly up when the engine, running
tender forward. was upon him. In another in
stant he had been thrown backward on the
track. TIL. engineer, William p. Doty. had al
ready pressed his lever and put on the air brake
The engine. however, rolled a few feet, and the
front wheel rolled onto Flanagan as he fell on
his back. his legs straddling the inner rail.
There the man was held the engine wheel crush
ing out his life and manglinP him horribly while
he was still conscious.
great cry went up from the passengers or
IN. downtown train who had witnessed the acci-
dent. and those Of the train which hac run the
man down poured out onto the station PLATFORM
For an instant all was excitement. Then the
horror of the scene drove many passengers away.
For the first five minutes that Flanagan lay
there crying for aid or death no one went near
him. A policeman and relief train were sent
for. and dozen men hurried away for a priest.
The policeman came first He was quickly fol-
lowed by the priest. Father Cooney, OF the
Church Of our Lady Of Good Counsel. The
policeman waited for the train. The priest
turnped quickly to the tracks and hurried TO the
side Of the dying man.
''Do YOU know who am" he asked
"A priest" said the dying man family. hurry
or you will be too late
Then a strange scene was enacted lit up
only by the faint light which reached the tracks
from the station. Surrounded by the trainmen
and sHch Of the passengers as had the courage
to look upon the face Of tn, man as he lay
pinned beneath the engine. Father Cooney per-
formed the rite Of Extreme Unction. Many who
stood around with uncovered heads wept; the
crowds on the elevated station stood silent, ana
from the nearby houses people looked from
every window But even as the priest kret be-
side the dying the trains rushed past IN
either direction for those Of the uptown track
had been switched that they took the middle
track and went around the delayed train.
Flanngan had lain pinned down for half an
hour when the relief train arrived. II took then
only five minutes to Jack up the engine and re-
lease Flannigan but before he could be carried
TO the platform he died. The body was removed
TO the East Eighty -eighth-st. police station to
await the arrival Of relatives