Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1900-09-07
RAILROAD CRASH.
EXCURsIONIsTs MEET TERRIBLE
DEATH NEAR PHILADELPHIA.
THIRTY OF THEM INJURED.
A Scene OF Undesirable Horror-Catas-
tfophe Occurred at Hatfield Station and
Came without an Instants Warning
Victims Were Pinned Under the Debris
Investigation to BE Made.

Philadelphia Especially Fifteen per-
sons were killed and so injured on the
Philadelphia and Reading Railroad fr
a rear-end collision between g. south
bound Atlantic City excursion train
and a milk train.
The disaster occurred few minutes
before 7 o'clock at Hatfield, Pa; a
small station in Montgomery county
on the Bethlehem Branch of the Phlla-
delphia and Reading Railway, q miles
northwest of this city. A dense fog
prevailed at the time, the milk train
was late, and this system of the Read
ing is operated without block signals.
The accident is attributed to these
three facts
The Atlantic City excursion left Beth
lehem in three sections few minutes
after o'clock. Three-quarters OF an
hour later the first section, composed
of locomotive and 10 cars, crowded
with passengers, while running at a
speed of between 40 and 80 miles an
hour crashed into the rear car of a
train composed of four milk cars and
passenger coach, standing in front of
the little station at Hatfield.
The momentum of the excursion
train was so great that the train ahead
of it was driven almost 300 feet. The
locomotive of the excursion train was
trown across the north and southbound
tracks about 200 feet from the railroad
station, where it fell on it's side. The
first three cars it was drawing were
torn from their trucks and the ends
crushed like eggshells, carrying death
and suffering to the passengers. The
fourth and fifth coaches were partly
derailed and the remaining five re-
manned intact. In the twinkling of
an eye the 500 pleasure seekers on the
train were thrown into shrieking
and terrified mass Of men, women and
children. Half a score had been killed
outright and more than 80 manned and
bleeding.
AS quickly as the passengers realized
that a smashup had occurred they
streamed out of the car doors and not
few in their haste clambered out Of
the windows. Many of those in the
forward coaches were unable to eXtri-
cate themselves from the debris. DoZ-
ems of passengers were bleeding from
injuries caused by the splinters and
fragments of glass. Others ran hither
and thither calling for their friends,
and indescribable confusion ensued.
The wounded pinioned down by the
seats and timber were grooming or cry
ing out to be relieved of their crushing
burdens.
With the first sOunds Of the crash
every nearby resident of Hatfield be-
came a voluntary giver of first aid to
the injured. Not only were the houses
thrown open to the wounded, but the
owners tore up their bed sheets and
linen, curtains and table covers to fur
nish bandages for the wounded.
The excursion train was picture of
indescribable horror. The locomotive
was a mass of bent and broken iron
and firmly held the bodies of its engl-
neer and fireman beneath its great
weight. Behind the engine six of the
ten cars were also mass Of wreck
age. The first car was broken in twain
and the other five cars were thrown on
their sides and crushed.
Nine persons were killed in the first
two cars and the others in these
coaches were badly MANNED. AS soon
as the crash came a terrible cry rose
from the smashed cars. Those who
had not been injured quickly crawled
or jumped from the cars and went to
the assistance of the injured. Many
were pinned down by wreckage and
had to be freed by the liberal use of
axes. With three or four exceptions
the dead were killed instantly. The
others died on their way to the hos
pitfalls.