The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-12-06
THREE KILLED.
Trolley Cars Met While at High
Speed.

Nearly Every Passenger Was Among the
Injured-The Accident Occurred in a
suburb of Detroit.
Detroit, Mich, December 1.-Two SUI
burban cars carrying more than ~ pas
sengers and both running. at speed OF
25 miles an hour, collided on the Detroit
and Oakland electric railroad this after
noon. Three men were instantly killed
and nearly score of persons were in
Jured IL of them seriously.
The dead are:
John Savage, superintendent of the
road.
Charles NJ. Whitehead, motorman.
John Kelly, Detroit, book agent.
The injured:
Frank McHugh, motorman. leg broken
and internally injured.
Louis Harnock seriously bruised and
internally injured.
Mrs. John 4oty, Pontiac, two ribs
broken and otherwise injured.
Aged mother of MARS. DOty, badly
crushed and leg broken.
Jonn +. Madden OF Leonard, legs and
arms badly bruised.
Peter hempsl OF Detroit, out on leg.
MIS-. l.. u. plulpn VI 0CpAo1pJ 4OSo oLo
| face badly bruised. s2ssG
VI. Arner Goodale OF. Lapeer. severely
| bruised.
Mrs. Goodale, face cut, body badly
bruised. s9lN
A. &. Robinson of Walnut, leg badly
cut, hand crushed and shoulder bruised.
John Keigel of Pontiac, compound
| fracture OF the leg.
| A half dozen Others were more or less
bv br0kap glass and bruised.
The exact cause of the accident is yet
| in doubt. President Hendrie of the road,
said tonight, that tine responsibility OF
the disaster had not been fixed. Accord
ing to the schedule car leaves each
end, Detroit and Pontiac, every hour,
and there are three sidings along the
road, Today the cars were behind time.
The one bound for Detroit had passed
an outbound car at the switcn two
miles from Pontiac, the crew apparently
being ignorant of the fact that another
outbound car was approaching them less
than two miles distant, although 1t is
claimed that they should have known it
from orders sent from birmingham.
The weather was foggy and the rails slip
perry from the sleet which hId been TALL
ing.
The collision came near q gravel pit
about midway between Pontiac and
Birmingham, at the foot of two steep
grades, down which the oars ran at full
speed The impact was terrific. 4 The. cars
were driven half through each other and
crushed TO pieces.
Superintendent Savage was in the
motorlnan's vestibule operating the out
bound car. Both his legs were cut off
and his body 1rightfully mangled.
Motorman Ntzhugh,, who stood behind
Savage, narrowly escaped similar fate.
John Kelly was evidently the only
passenger who saw the north bound car
approaching. He rushed for the yesti-
buls door and he and Motorman White
head were struggling together to get out
of the door when the crash came. Both
were killed. kelly's shoulders and head
were jammed outside Of the vestibule
window and his neck was broken. White
heads head was cut open and his chest
crushed. Had it not been for the stout
construction of the cars, both Of which
were new, it is doubtful whether any of
their occupants would have escaped, and
as it was nearly all OF the IA passengers
in the south bound suffered some injury.
Some of the injured were taken to farm
houses and Others brought to the city
hospitals. The company's officials nre
investigating as to the cause OF the dis
aster and coroner's jury has already
been impannelled.