Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1902-12-27
Passenger and Freight
Trains on the Grand Trunk
Came Together.
THIRTY PERSONS KILLED
Wreck Caught Fire But Pas
sengers Eztinguished the
Flames By Throwing
On Snow.

London, Ontario, Dec. 27.-A fright.
ful collision occurred last night be
tween passenger and freight train or
the Grand Trunk railroad at Wantsead
station, on the Sarnia branch of thai
road and, according to the latest re
ports from the scene of the accident
80 persons were killed and 26 injured
The passenger train was Pacific Elk.
press No. s, westbound. 1t was run
ming at high rate of speed, and the
freight, which was proceeding east IN.
der slow headway, was to have taken
the switch at Wanstead to allow the
passenger train to pass. Apparently
neither engineer saw the danger in
time to avert the accident for the tvs
trains came together near the west
switch with frightful crash, over
turning into the ditch.
The baggage and express cars were
teescoped into the smoker with appal-
ling results. The wreck was complete
and it is thought hardly person in the
smoker escaped injury. The other
cars on the passenger train remained
on the track. The work of removing
the dead and injured was then proceed
ed with.
The wreck, shortly after the collis-
ion, caught fire, and but for the heroic
efforts OF brigade of passengers organ
ized and led by an old man who was him
self passenger OH the i'll fated train the
disaster might have been more disaster
GUS to those pinned down in the wreck
By his heroic efforts this brigade put
out the fire by throwing snow on the
flames with their hats and hands. They
tken turned their efforts toward getting
out the wounded who had their suffer-
ings increased by the binding snow
storm and thermometer ear zero The
dead and injured arrived in London by
special train this morning and the
work of identifying the dead and caring
for the sufferers is being hurried Us fast
as possible.
The accident is said to be due to the
failure of the operator to give orders to
the express train to meet the freight at
the station.
The following is a partial and official
list of the identified dead: Alexander
Stewart, Petrolia, Ont; Mrs. Alexander
Stewart, Petrolia, Ont. A. Ricketts,,
Sarnia, tunnel fireman; j. Gillies, Sar-
MIA, tunnel engineer; Mrs. Trotter, Pc
trolia, Ont; Lawrence, Watford, Ont:
f. s. Freeman, Oil Springs, Ont; jeff
rey, London, Ont; Glenn Podley, Port
Huron, Mich; Gay Debenier, ticketed
to La Crosse, Wisconsin,; DR.. Pcnward-
en-, ticketed to Petrola, Ont; woman,
supposed to be Penwardens wife; j. H.
Brock, Brucefeld, Ont; 0. B. Burwell,
Port Huron, Mich; Wilson Morton, Chi
cago. In addition to the above, Is bod
les remain to be identified. Miss JAottie
Lynch, Port Huron, Mich, died in the
hospital.
AN OLD OPERATOR.
Montreal, Dec. 27.-Superintendent
McGuigan of the Grand Trunk railroad,
says his information is there are about
rs killed and 30 injured, but reliable
list has not reached him. He cannot
understand, he says, how the operator
who is charged with the mistake, made
such a blunder. He is one of the Oldest
and most reliable operators, the superjn-
tendent added. He went in service with
the Great Western railway in 1877. He
appears to have failed to give the order
to the passenger train to meet the
freight at the station.
WRECK IN MISSOURI.
Kansas City Mo. Dec. 27.-A special
from Paola Kas. says: "a head end
collision occurred between freight trains
on the Missouri Pacific railroad one
mile south of Dodson at one o'clock this
morning. One was killed and S were
injured. The dead man is I. P. Norton,
brakeman, OF Sedalia. Mo-"
ILLINOIS CENTRAL WRECKED.
louisville, Dec. 27.-The fast pas
senger train on the Illinois Central,
bound for CINCINNATI from New Orleans
crashed into work train at Caneyville,
"a miles from Louisville today. Three
men were instantly killed and two injur-
cd. One OF the engines was demolished
and an other engine and three cars were
derailed.
The killed are Robert Smith, engineer
of the work train, Elizabethtown. KY,
Thomas Bell, fireman of the work train,
Louisville, KY; w. o. Roberts, fireman
of the passenger train, Central City,
KY.