The Worthington advance., 1900-06-29

A FATAL PLUNGE.
r..,a a'' 9 sos. 4 -. .,.,. w..hss-t Ut, = = |.
sosthe II. Il n sR.W1lfoa ID asdl..-Thirty-Fiive..
Passengers Perish.

Atlanta, Ga, June 25.-A passenger
train on the Macon branch of the
Sout hern railway. ran into q washout
1As miles north of Mcbonough, Ca,
Saturday night, and was completely
wrecked. The wreck caught fire and
the entire train, with the exception of
the sleeper, was destroyed. Every per-
son on the train except the occupants
sof the Pullman carperished. Not amem-
Der of the train crew escaped: Thirty
live people in all were killed, and a
number injured, Following is a list
of the dead:.*.
William "A. I Barclay conductor, At
ianta; J. e. Wood conductor. Atlanta:
T.. Hunnicutt. conductor, Atlanta: j.
ET. Sullivan, engineer w.. w. Bennett.
cotton buyer. 5Atlantas w. j., Pate. At
lanta: 12-year-old son of w. J. Pate, At
| lanta: H. sR: Ctesemaf1, Pullman cofduc.
ter: George w. Flournoy, Atlanta: ID. c.
[ Hightower. StockbridEe, :. Ca; w. w.
1park: Macon, Ga; Elder. Henson. trav-
Florida: ]. r. Florida, Nashville: w. o.
Ellis. bridgeman, stockbridge; d. Y. Grif-
nth, supervisor; J. H. Rhodes, fiagman:
John Brantley (white), fireman; VIII
Green, extra fireman: w. L. Morrisett,
pump repairer; w. R. Lawrence, fore.
man extra gang: Ed Byrd (colored), fire.
| man, Atlanta: Robert Spencer, train por-
ter: four bodies unidentified; eight negro
section hands.
Ten passengers were rescued with
out serious injury.
Camps creek, which runs into the
Ocmulgee river, was over it's banks and
its waters had spread to all the low
lands through which it runs About a
mile and half north of McDonough
the creek comes somewhat near the
Southern's tracks, and, running along
side it for some distance, finally passes
away under the road by heavy stone
culyert. "A cloudburst broke over that
section of the country about six o'clock
Saturday night, and presumably short
ly after dark washed out a section of
the track nearly 100 feet in length.
Into this the swiftly moving train
plunged. The storm was still ra aging
and all the car windows were closed.
The passengers, secure, as they
thought, and sheltered comfortab ably
from the inclement weather, went to
death without an stant's warning.
The train, consisting of baggage
car, second-class coach, first class
coach and a Pullman sleeper, was
knocked into kindling wood by the fall.
The wreck caught fire a few minutes
after the fall and all the coaches were
burned except the Pullman car. Every
person on the train except the occu-
pants of the Pullman. car pershed in
the disaster. There was no escape, as
the heavy Pullman car weighted down
the Others, and the few alive in the
/ sleeper were unable to render assist
ance to their fellow passengers.
Flagman Quinlan, who was one of the
first to get out, at once started for
the nearest telegraph station. Making
his way as rapidly as possible in the
face of the binding storm, he stumbled
into the Office at McDonough, and after
telling the night operator of the wreck
tell fainting to the floor. Word was
quickly sent to both Atlanta and Ma.
con, but 10 assistance was to he had
except in the latter city, as the inter-
t rupted track prevented .thet arrivSf o1
any train from Macon. Nearly the en-.
tire male population of McDonough
went to the scene to render assistance,
but little could be done by the rescuers,
as the fire kept them at distance. At
daylight the bodies that had foated
from the gorge were gathered up. One
body was found mile from the wreck
and many were seen along its banks.
A wreck train was started out from
Atlanta at midnight, but owing to the
burning wreckage nothing could be
done until morning. A special train t
six o'clock Sunday morning took doc
tors, ministers, railroad officials and
helpers to the scene, but nothing could
be done save to gather up the bodies.