The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1899-05-16
RAILWAY
VICTIMS !
A Serious Wreck Occurred Near Tama-
qua This Morning.
An ENGINEER KILLED OUTRIGHT
Two Firemen Suffer so Seriously That They
Are Not Expected to survive--Three
Passengers Were Injured--A
Spike on Rail caused
the Wreck.


hpNciai W ANhNANb hhhAAhs
Tamaqua, May 16-A collision occurred
this morning between passenger tram and q
coal train Of the Philadelphia and Reading
Railway at Lengeneckers siding. about two
miles south of this place, whereby the eugi-
neer of the passenger train was instantly
killed, two fremen were fatally injured, and
three passengers sustained painful, though
not very serious injuries. Many of the pas
sengers suffered from shock.
The man instantly killed was Samuel G.
Grier, of Newberry, aged 40 years, wife and
seven children. He was the engineer of the
passenger train. His head was battered to
pieces and his body badly mutilated.
The injured are:
LAFAYETTE KERsTETTER, fireman on the
passenger train 80 years old wife and
family at Shamokin badly injured and
scalded cannot live.
JOHN SHORT, fireman Of the coal train
lives at Port Richmond back broken and
otherwise injured cannot live; removed to
POttsvIlle, and then sent to his home.
PETER J. O'NEILL, passenger ON smoking
car, shoulder blade broken.
FRANK BETz, Ashland, master mason for
?. & R. Ry. Co, slightly injured mostly
from shock
FRANK BAsTIAN, Mahanoy City, right leg
bruised from ankle to knee and probably in
jured internally.
The passenger train that figured in the
wreck left Mahanoy City at SOP this morn
ing. When near Longeneckers siding pony
wheel of the engine, on the high side, struck
an obstruction in the shape of a railroad
| spike, which was lying across the rail The
engine jumped the track and made head-on
plunge into the engine of a coal train stand
ing on parallel track. The engineer of the
passenger train, Samuel G.. Grier, was
instantly killed. The front coach of the
passenger train was thrown on its side and
down the embsnkment. All the passengers
were badly shaken up, but none sustained
dangerous injury.
Frank Bastian, of Mahauoy City, who was
among the injured, stated that the passenger
train was running at high rate of speed
when it struck the obstruction and curve.
The engine jumped the track and the smOk.
ing car followed. The engine ran along the
sills for several yards before il struck the
coal train engine. In the meantime the
windows of the smoking car were broken
and the glass, with that from the transoms in
the top of the car, was showered on the pas
sengers, who caught hold of the seats and
braced themselves as the car jolted over the
sills. The car came to a sudden stop and the
passengers were thrown in heap over each
other. Mr.. Bastian was among them.
When the seat he had hold of gave
away he was thrown into one corner of the
car, with his feet in the air. fellow pas
senger went to his assistance and Bastian had
just regained his feet when the collision oc-
Cured. The shock threw him through
window and he landed down an embank-
meHt, into the creek below. The passenger
who had assisted him in the car went head
long through the same window.
When Bastian climbed up the en-
bankment he saw Kerstetter, the
passenger train fireman, dragging himself
from beneath one end of the smoking car,
which had swung down the embankment
His face was covered with blood from gap
ing wound in the forehead and he was suffer-
ing great agony from the scalding he re-
ceived. Bastian assisted him up the en-
bankment, and then went to the assistance
of others. One man Bastian SAYS
he recognized was y resident from
JacksOn's. He could not recall
} his name. The man sustained fracture of
the collar bone. Shortly before the collision
occurred the bsggage-master was standing in
one corner of the car, holding ON to seat
The shock threw him through the partly
open door and he landed down the embank-
ment, but escaped serious injury. The cor
ner of the car where the baggage master
stood was completely wrecked
The escape of the passengers in the smoks
ing car from being crushed was due partly to
the fact that engine No. sf5 of the passenger
train stood cross-wise on the opposite track
and, when it struck the coal train engine.
The passenger engine was completely reversed
and toppled over, pushing one end of the
smoking car away from the wreck and down
the embankment. The wreckage took fire,
but the flames were subdued with buckets of
water before much damage was done by fire,
The work of rescue was somewhat impeded
by the hysterical demonstrations of the
women passengers in the rear coach. While
some of the male passengers looked after the
former others cared for the injured The re-
lief train arrived from Tamaqua about alf
an hour after the wreck occurred. The D.
iured were first taken to Tamaqus.
The engineer of the coal train escaped in
jury by being on the opposite side of his en-
gine to that which was struck by the pas.
senger engine,