The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1902-01-17
FIFTEEN II PASSENGERS Killed
:rwICE THAT NUMBER ARE MORE
OR LESS. SERIOUSLY IN
JURED. 81
VICTIMS MAAGlfD AND sCAlDED
WORK OF RESCUE Is MARKED BY
DEEDS OF HEROIsM AND
SACRIFICE.

New York, Jan. 10.-In the New York
Central railroad tunnel that burrows
under Park avenue. this city. two local
trains collided yesterday. Fifteen pas.
4sengers were killed, AMI twice that num-
Der were injured. A dozen Of the latter
were seriously hurt. and the roster Of
the dead may be extended.
Il was a rear-end collision between q
South Norwalk local that ran in over
the New York. New Haven & Hartford
railroad and was halted by block sig
nails at the southern entrance Of the
tunnel, and White Plains local that
came by the Harlem branch of the
New York Central. The wreck occurred
at'S:17 a. M, at which hour the trains
were crowded by suburbanites. Most
of the death, injury and damage was
wrought by the engine of the White
Plains train, which plunged into the
rear car Of the motionless train and
was driven through 20 the middle of
the car, smashing the seats and fur
nishings and splitting the sides as it
moved forward. The victims either
age carried at the pilot, crushed in The
space between the boiler and car sides,
Or Scnldcd by Steam
which came kissing from broken pipes
and cylinders. The engine in it's final
plunge Of forty feet, carried the rear
car forward and sent twisted iron,
broken timbers and splinters crashing
into the coach ahead Lights were ex-
Gnguished and from the wreckage and
darkness came the cries of the injured
and calls for assistance by those who
escaped. Within q few minutes the
work of rescue, marked by heroism
and sacrifice began. Alarms that
brought every available ambulance in
the city, the police reserves of five pre-
cincts and the firemen of the Central
Eastern district of Manhattan island
were sounded ut once. With police,
firencen and surgeons came a score Of
volunteer physicians and half a dozen
clergymen.
Ladders were run down the tunnel
airshafts and the firemen and police
attacked the debris with ropes and
axes. Passengers already had rallied
and were trying to release those i'm
priscned in the debris. Father Smith
and Rev. Or. Wall1ley, chaplains of the
fire department, crawled in over the
wreckage and 1ninistered to the dying.
Lieut.. Clarke OF the fire department
forced his way to the point where two
women lay and stood in water that
scalGed the
Flesh From His Limbs
until the women were released. T. M.
Murphy, a passenger, both of whose
legs were broken and still held by the
ti1nbers, volunteered to remain as he
was until those around him were as
sisted.
Two policemen and Chaplain Walkel!r
reached a Mrs. Howard and the chap
lain gave her a stimulant. The police
men were cutting away the seat which
he'd the woman down when pipe
broke. The seal ling steam drove them
back and when the rescuers returned
Mrs. Howard was dead.
Responsibility for the disaster is I'M
fixed, but Supt. Franklin said that Sc
far as he had been able to discover, J.
NJ. Wisker, engineer Of the White
Plains train, is to blame. 1t is de-
clared that when the South Norwalll
train stopped a fagnan ran back into
the turrel and besides placing a tor
pedc on the track, endeavored to flag
the oncoming train. The tunnel was
Lfc!ou6ed with steam and smoke,
while the snow which fell through the
airshafts tended to obscure the view.
Engineer Wisker ana Fireman Christo-
phcr Flynn were arrested. A signal
man was also detained for time but
was released.