The Topeka state journal., 1897-10-25

about a foot of the top When we struck
the car whirled completely around, the
end which the Chinese occupied being
under water, while our end was tilted
up. We swan around and got a venti-
lator open and, noting the situation,
got an ak from tool box which was
afloat and smashed a panel in the end
of the car We craWled through the
hole to the roof of the car and row
boat came out and took US ashore"
Acker has been a railroader many
years, and has escaped from three SER
ious accidents. His arm is badly cut
and his body bruised. Shaw escaped in
jury.
The first victim of the disaster found
was lying On the shore dying. He was
badly bruised about the head and BODY
and his right arm was cut off near the
shoulder, the bleeding stump alone
showing. The man was placed on a
train and taken to Peekskill, but died
on the way. The body was that of a
middle aged man.
Five men were rescued from the top
of a floating car a few minutes after
the accident. They. were put on train
and taken to PeeksBiI, about ten miles
down the road. They We're admitted to
the Helping Hand hospital where their
wounds were dressed. OF the five three
were Cinnamon, and none was fatally
injured.
At s o'clock one of the express trains
left the scene with a man who had died
on the track and about % injured per-
sons. The dead men and five injured
We're taken to the Helping Hand hos
pital, while the train proceeded to New
Y Orl1 with the rest of the injured. This
train had hardly left the scene of the
disaster when a special engine arrived,
bringing Division superintendent Nc
Coy and Trainmasters Wyckes and
Slack from TarrytOwn, and almost si-
multaneousIy a wrecl1ing train arrived
from Peekskill and another one came
from POughkeepsie. The officials saw
at once that the wrecling cars would be
,fr.a.,
their position in the river, where they
were almost completely submerged, so
the Chapman Wrecking company of
New York was notified to send a river
derrick and floats to raise the cars.
General Manager TOucey gave the fol-
lowing statement as the cause of the
disaster to the representative of the
Associated Press:
1.-The accident was caused by the bed
of the railroad being washed out in
some inexplicabIe manner In this un-
dermined condition the track sank as
the weight of the train was put on it,
and embankment giving way, the train
was, of course, precipitated into the
river Such conditions as this we have
never looked for Trains have been
running over this spot for years and
years without accident or difficulty of
any kind and this piece of track was
considered as good as any section of
the railroad. Not only was the roadbed
the hardest kind of an embankment,
but it was strengthened by a retaining
water wall of solid masonry three feet
thick
Other railroad officials were of the
opinion that a quicksand foundation of
some kind below the water line was re-
sponsible for the sinking of the road
bed.
Before 10 o'clock a large number Of
curious spectators had gathered at the
scene, coming from the nearby towns
and villages by trains, wagons, bicycles
and boats.
The American Express company had
number of it's agents at the scene
early in the day, but they were power
less to do anything, as no attempt was
made to raise their car. 1t was said
that this car contained thousands of
dollars worth of valuables, but the Of
ficia1s said that all would be recovered,
as the valuables were in a stationary
safe attached to the car.
Among the railroad men, it was gen
orally believed that A G. Mckay of
Harlem, private secretary to General
superintendent Vanetten, had lost his
life in the wreck. He was a passenger
on the train and was last seen at AL
bany, where it was said he boarded the
locomotive to ride with the engineer.
If that is true he shared the fate of the
engineer and fireman. At any rate he
is still missing.