The Topeka state journal., 1902-07-25
CRASH IN DARK.
Pennsylvania Limited Runs Into
Wild Coal Car
While Going at Speed of 70
Miles an Hour.
AN APPALLING WRECK.
Seven Persons Known to Be Dead
and Four Missing.
Body Of the Engineer Burned
to Ashes.
SIXTEEN ARE INJURED.
Fire Was Started by Explosion
of q Gas Tank.

to the Sentinel from Trebeins, O., says:
One of the most appalling wrecks IN
the history of the Pennsylvania. road oc-
CURED here last night at 1890 O'Clock
when the limited from ST. Louis to New
York. with a heavy train of engine. two
mail cars, day coach and four Pullman
sleepers, while running at 70 miles an
hour crashed into a wild fiat car loaded
with coal coming down grade toward 1t
at a rate of 25 miles an hour.
Three dead bodies have been taken
from the wreck, the engineers body Will
never be recovered, being burned to
ashes. Four others are known to be
burned to death and several are miss
ing. The train was totally consumed by
fire with the exception of the two rear
Pullmans. Sixteen persons were injured.
Two postal clerks are dead. two others
are badly scalded and a dozen or more
persons are more or less hurt.
The crash came in the darkness. The
clouds hid the moon. and to add to the
horror, gas tank under coach ex-
ploded and the entire wreck was a mass
of flames in three minutes after the col
lision with the runaway coal car.
THE DEAD.
VIM CLARK, engineer, trunk of body
and one leg found. leaves wife and three
PATRICK DwYER. fireman, cincin-
natl.
NJ. M. PETERS, mail clerk, Cincin-
E. E. M. MKOWN, mail clerk, Green
field, Ind; body not recovered.
THE INJURED.
Joseph Converse aged 81, Elmira, N.
Y; scalp wound, not serious.
Bessie Donovan, 18, Irwin. Pa; cut
about head. not serious.
VIM. g. Forsythe, Indianapolis; mail
clerk; dangerous
W. A. Clifford, Woodstock, mail clerk;
injured about head and arm; dangerous.
James McFadden, Indianapolis; nose
fractured, not serious.
Mollie Collins, Louisville; head cut,
not serious.
The story of a woman and child hav-
ing been burned to death Is diScredited.
Ten or twelve people who are not in
cluded in the above list were injured,
but none seriously.
The little town is three miles west OF
Xenia. There is a heavy down grade
from that city here. While switching
coal cars there last night a loaded hal
car became detached and shot dOwr
the heavy grade towards this hamlet
The limited express on the Pennsylvania
railroad was speeding on the same track
in the opposite direction at the rate ol
70 miles an hour. 1t was late and Dn'
gineer Clark was trying to make VI
time. In the darkness he evidently die
| not see the coal car coming down Of
saw it too late. His train crashed into
| the and an instant later the entire
mass was a burning pile of wreckage
| Then minutes latAr all had been takel
| out of the burning mass but seven.
Passengers escaped without clothing
except the seven in the day coach Th'
survivors stood helpless and heard th'
screams of two women and one maj
| pinned in the wreckage for whom ai(
was impossible. For three hours tn
| wreck burned. The Xenfa and Daytol
fire departments went to the rescue
They could save no life.
William Dwyer, the fireman, wa
taken out alive, but lived only 80 min
utes. -Four postal clerks were in tn
mail cars. They were Clifford and For
| syth of Indianapolis, Peters of Colum
| bus and MCGOWAN of Greenfield, Ind
The bodies of Peters and McGowal
| were recovered badly scalded an
| mangled-
| 1t was an hour before help arrives
| from Xenia. The survivors were take
| there and the injured cared for. Late
in the night a special took the unin
jured to Columbus. Many of them wi
! continue on their journey.
Later wrecking crews arrived and tn
! track is being put in shape. 1t is tor
up for 200 yards A claim agent of tn
| road is preparing list of the injure
as accurately as the confusion will al
low. It will be some days before tn
A LATER ACCOUNT.
Xenia, O., July PA wreck occurre
at 1880 last night at Trebein station
| the Pennsylvania limited from ST. Loui
to New York, was met by a wild Goa
car at the foot of heavy grade. TIL
number of dead and injured was nc
easily ascertained because the wreck
age took fire and all but the two Pull
man cars in the rear :scs burned. Th
train was behind time and was runnin
| at the rate of 70 miles an hour to max
up lost time. Besides the postal an
| express cars, it consisted of a da
coach and several sleepers.
In some manner a car loaded wit
coal became unloosened from it's couI
ling and started down a three mil
grade, gaining velocity as it went. A
the bottom of the grade it crashed int
the passenger train The coal car wa
| completely spfiptered The passenge
| engine is a mass of ruins. while the pos
tai and express cars were piled on to
of 1t in a promiscuous heap. Almos
simultaneous with the first crash tn
gas tanks under the cars exploded an
set fire to the ruins.
Instantly cries could be heard frol
the mass of wreckage-
An engine from xenia was hurried I
the scene and two Pullmans that RI
! manned safely on the track were haule
to a place of safety, serving for tt
time being as refuge for the wounde'
Most of the passengers were tickete
through from St. Louis or far wester
points to New York
The injured were taken to Xeni
where not only the hotels but priva