Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-11-28
Estimated That One nd1ed PeopIe Lose
Lives in Wabash Smash-up.
MERCHANT SANDBAGGED.

> gold watch last evening while re.
= turning from a neiehbor's house >
where he had been doing some =
y work. He was unconscious about >
two hours. y
sss*% sss*#* %..&%.,*s
the wreck alive made heroic efforts to
rescue the less fortunite The condi-
tlon of the wreck was such that in the
darkness it was impossible to render
immediate aid. Immigrants who We're
lucky enough to get out alive from the
last two immigrant cars were unable
to speak English and could give no
idea, apparently, of the number of peo-
pie in each car. The conductor of this
train could not be found. For this
reason the estimate of the number of
dead must be considered purely as ap-
proXimate. Railroad doctors and 9TH
ers agreed that the number must ap-
proach 100. When relief trains arriv-
ed as many of the injured as could be
carried, were taken to Montpelier, o.,
Peru, Ind, and the hospitals at Ad-
rian.
Light on the Cause.
SohSiuSla aple ilSul was JnrOWn on
the cause of the disaster by the order
which the conductor showed as his
authority for preceding past Sand
Creek. The order which was deliver
ed to the train at Holloway reads as
follows:
Order Number IS; trains thirteen
and three: Number four, engine 6O9,
will meet number thirteen at Seneca,
and number three, engine 62S, at Sand
Creek. Engines number SS and 151
will double head number thirteen.
1t is understood the engineer and
conductor of number Four received a
similar order at Montpelier, Ohio, but
If SO these orders were ,disregarded,
Scene Bleak, and DesoIate.
The scene of the holocaust present
ed bleak and desolate appearance
this morning. Strewn along both
sides of the track for 500 feet were
car wheels, brake beams, and such
other parts of the wrecked coaches as
would not burn.
Engines in the Ditch.
Engines SS and 500 are lying in the
ditch on the right hand side of the
road, veritable scrap heaps.
cars Daubed With Blood.
Broken cars, many of them daubed
with the blood of their last occupants,
are scattered about and their seats
are being used as cushions by those
hurdled around the open fires about
the scene. Farmers for miles around
drove to the scene this morning in the
majority of cases bringing their wives
and families with them.
Find Pieces of Victims.
1t was past midnight before a search
of the ruins of the burned cars could
be begun. AS soon as the heat sub.
sided sufficiently scores of men began
delving in the mass. AS it was slowly
turned over small, crisp pieces of
/ those who had perished in the flames
were found.
Reduced to Blackened Powder.
The largest portion of any body
found was terribly burned trunk.
The heat was so intense, the cars and
their human freight was reduced to
blackened powder, that was blown for
about for hundreds of feet by the
breeze. Inside of two hours the iron
work of the cars had all been hauled
into the ditch at the right side of the
road
Relief Parties at Hand.
The first relief party on the scene
arrived from Adrian fifty-five minutes
after the accident, and they immedi-
ately began to work on the second
coach of train number four, which was
telescoped by the collision, and reduc-
ed to splinters. The wrecked coach
was jammed into space hardly four
teen feet square From the ruins of
the car the bodies of four men and
one woman were pulled out.
Trains Hurry Wounded to Hospitals.
Train number 8, which was waiting
on the side track at Sand Greek, was
run up to the scene of the accident
practically all the injured from the
westbound train and started for the
company's hospital at Peru, Indiana
A relief train from Montpelier, Ohio,
took more of the injured from the east
bound train and also started for Peru
with them. Pending the arrival OF
ambulance trains the injured, as fast
as extricated, were placed in two OF
i the sueepers attached to train No 13
which was not wrecked, or taken tc
the house of Ben Huss, which was
within 10 yards of where the collision
occurred
4 Fragments Taken Aaway.
4 AT o'clock the bodies of the dead
together with a few awful fragments
that were dug out of the burning cars
were placed aboard car and taken
to Adrian,
Find Fireman.
At Ais o'clock the body of Fireman
Calvin Baldorf was discovered Jammed
I into the wrecked cab of his engine
number ISL. At o'clock the wreck
ers removed the last piece of wreck
age from the track. 1t was engine
Isl. Although considerably warped
and bent, its wheels were, still tru,