Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1902-07-26
With A TERRIFIC CRASH.
Express Train and Runaway Coal Car
Collide at the Foot of Heavy
Railroad Grade.
Ruins of Wrecked Coaches are Set on
Fire by Explosion Of Several
= Gas Tanks. 81.
-Four Persons Known to Have Perished
but Feare the Loss Of Life is
Much Larger. =

Xenia, O., July 26.-A serious wreck
occurred at Trebein station, three
Pennsylvania limited from ST. Louis to
New York, was met by a wild coal car
at the foot of a heavy grade. The
number Of dead and injured was not
easily ascertained, because the wreck
age took fire and all but the two Pull
man cars in thetrear was burned. The
train was behind and was running at
the rate Of 20 miles an hour to make
up lost time.
Besides the postal and express cars
it consisted of day coach and several
sleepers. &s .l.a
Ia some manner car loaded with
coal had become unloosened from its
couplings and started down three
mile grade, gaining velocity as Invent.
At the bottom of the grade it crashed
into the engine of the passenger train.
OF the coal car there is scarcely to
be found trace, SO completely was it
splintered. The passenger engine is
a mass of ruins, while the postal and
express cars were piled on top of it in
promiscuous heap.
Almost simultaneously with the
first crash the gas tanks under the cars
exploded and set fire to the ruins.
The engineer, William Clark of Co.
lumbus, O., was buried beneath his en-
gine and his body was burned to ashes.
His fireman, William Dwyer of Cincin-
natl, was horribly mangled, but was
thrown clear from the engine. Of the
four postal clerks on the train two
were killed, M. M. Peters of Columbus
and Charles MCGOWAN of Greenfield,
Ind. 5ss
George A. Clifford of Indianapolis and
William G.. Forsythe, also Of Indianap-
. oils, were injured, Clifford but slightly,
Forsythe seriously. The surgeon does
not regard his injuries as fatal.
Running at, Terrific Speed. 4
The dawn of morning brought to full
view the horror of the wreck The
train had been running at terrific
speed and the wild car had almost at
/ tanned its greatest momentum when
the accident occurred at the end Of a
steep grade. When the crash came
the train, with the exception of two
3 rear sleepers, left the track and piled
up into heap. A moment of silence
Z followed and then could be heard the
cries for help Those Of the passen-
gers who eXtricated themselves from
their perilous positions rendered all
assistance possible and rescued many
from the debris, but a gas tank, ex-
p1oding beneath one of the cars, set
the wreckage on fire and the intense
heat from the flames soon drove the
rescuers back so that those who were
/ pinned beneath the train were con-
sumed by the flames. It was most
pitiable sight, cries and means COM
Ing from those who could not be res
cued and those who were slowly being
burned to death and it was some time
before any of the bodies were reached.
Engineer William j. Clark of Colun-
bus and Fireman Dwyer Of Cincinnati
4 were the first found, both being mutt
lated and horribly burned.
Postal Clerks MCGOWAN of Green
field and M. NJ; Peters of Columbus
were also killed and their bodies were
gotten out and brought to this city
during the morning. II i s:$ III
Conductor Hughes, who was on the
wrecked train, reported that there
were at least three or four passen-
\ gers who could not be gotten out and
whose bodies are still in the ruins.
# It will likely take, Some time before
the full list of dead can be ascertained
as all the baggage in the train, with
the exception Of two pieces, was con
sumed in the flames.
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