The record-union., 1899-02-03
FATAL SNOWSLIDE IN COLORADO,
A WORK TRAIN ON THE d. AND
r. G. WRECKED.
Three Men Killed and Six Others
Seriously Injured-Storm
Raging in the State.

DENVER, Feb. 2-Information has
been received here by Superintendent
R1dgeway of the Denver and Rio
Grande Railroad that a snowslide on
it's line, nine miles east of Glenwood
Springs, to-day came down on top of
a work train, wrecking the engine and
cars and killing three of the working
crew and injuring six others.
The killed are: John Mcmahon, road
master Denver and Rio Grande, Glen
wood Springs, Col; ]. Dempsey, sec
tion man, Spruce Greek, Col; J. Mulvi-
hill, section man, Red Cliff, Col
Injured: Charles Hackett, engineer,
Grand Junction, Col, head and back
injured; 7. H. Car, fireman, Grand
Junction, head injured r. B. Steele,
engineer, Grand Junction, hand hurt;
A. Diver, brakeman, Grand Junction,
back hurt; G. H. Berry, car repairer,
Minturn, Col, head hurt; B. Bernard,
section man, Gypsum, Col, internally
injured.
The work train had been sent to clear
the snow off the blocked track east of
Glenwood. and was blowing through
drift when the slide came and buried
the workmen. For some time it was
feared the entire crew of thirty-two
men were lost, but all have been ac-
counted for to Superintendent Ridge
way. Z"
The Rio Grande road is now in worse
shape. than before. Snow is piled on
the track at some places twenty feet
high. 1t will take hours to open the
blockade.
STORM AGAIN RAGING.
DENVER, Feb. 2-The snowsterm
that has ragged with brief intermissions
for more than a week in Colorado, was
renewed to-day with energy undated.
The snowfall during the later hours Of
the night and nearly all day was very
heavy, while strong winds piled it up
and filled railroad cuts almost COM
pletely blocking railroad traffic in the
mountain district. Snowsides have oc-
Cured at several points, one eighteen
miles west of Leadvil1e, on Mount Ell
bert, carrying down a miners cabin
and burying William Manning, aged go
years.
Many mountain towns are cut off
from the world, the only means of COM
munication being men on snowshoes.
Food and fuel supplies are becoming
alarmingly short in many places.
The difficult and really hazardous
piece of work to remove the suspense
at Breckenridge, Como. Dillon and
other points around the first named
camp was successfully accomplished by
the Colorado and Southern to-day at
noon, when citizens armed with shovels
cleared the South Park tracks to Breck-
enridge, and a much battered supply
train crawled into the town, the first
in three weeks. The situation at Brock
enridge was becoming critical. Food
was becoming scarce, and the groceries
kept in the stores were at low ebb.
Yesterday hay could not be purchased
for love or money. Oats were worth
their weight in gold. Miners, prospect
ors. millmen and timber cutters were
coming in from the surrounding hills,
begging provisions. Breckenridge was
a spot in a sea of snow. Slides in all
directions made the roads leading into
the camps impossible.
At Leadville the supply of coal is so
small that forced shut down of the
mines and smelters is threatened Rail-
road men say the numerous snowslides
are unprecedented at this season of the
year. Slides usually occur only in the
spring. The' cause now is the enormous
amount of snow in the mountains.