Evening journal., 1903-04-13
FOUR MEN DEAD
IN COLLISION
Express and Freight Trains
Collide on the Canadian
Pacific
LOCOMOTIVES LOCKED TOGETHER


Engineer Ct Freight Disrecarded Or
6,rs % r. a Gliding, ard Fast *
press Struck His Engine With Ter
rife Force.
Halifax, n. S., April 13.-Four per
sons dead. two fatally hurt, at least
one missing and several others slight
ly injured is the record of head-on
collision on the Intercolonial Railway,
which occurred just before midnight
Saturday near Windsor Junction,
II miles from Halifax. The poles and
telegraph lines along the roadside
were wrecked and this city was cut
OFF from communication with the out
side. world for hours.
The trains in collision were the Can
adian Pacific Railway express from
Montreal and Boston for Halifax and
a fast freight from Halifax for Mon
treal. The conductor and driver of
the freight had orders TO take the
siding at Windsor Junction and let the
express cross, but for some unknown
reason Driver Copeland. Of the freight
train. passed the junction on the main
line and met the express two miles
beyond. It is thought that Copeland
may have lost control OF his train,
which was made up of IS cars The
freight was running 25 miles an hour.
and the express, which was two hours
late, was travelling about As miles an
hour.
The dead are: Express Driver Will
liam Wall. Express Fireman Michael
Oakley, Freight Fireman Hill. Freight
Brakeman ThorR.
Fatally hurt: Freight Driver Cope
land, tramp named McCready, OF
Antigonish.
The express, consisted of postal and
baggage cars and three passenger
coaches, in charge Of Conductor Nc
Clafierty. The freight was an unusu-
ally heavy train, in charge of Conduc-
tor Haynes. Both trains were hauled
by new AM powerful locomotives, tand
they crashed together on a level piece
Of road skirting a lake The engine
crew Of the express and Fireman Hill,
of the freight, died almost Immediate
ly after the crash, and Brakeman
Thorp was instantly killed. The dri-
yer of the freight is in the hospital
with a broken spine and cannot live
A tramp had been caught stealing a
ride on the train and had been put
OFF by the train hands, but managed
10 swing on again, and was finally
taken into the cab out of danger. The
brakeman of the freight. who was
killed, was in the cab, having gone
forward prior to reaching Windsor
Junction to be in readiness to drop off
the train when it slowed up and open
the switch to let the freight in on the
siding. When the speed of the freight
was not reduced approaching the juno
ton Conductor Haynes says he real
lied that nothing short of a miracle
could prevent a collision. There was
no bell cord to send a warning to the
driver and the conductor ordered a
brakeman to drop off the rear end Of
the freight and telegraph the next
station. Wellington. to hold the ex-
|
express sped past Wellington Station
as the operator there received the
warning signal. He dashed out on the
platform. wildly waving a lantern. but
the train disappeared down the line
in the darkness. A few minutes later
the collision occurred.
The locomotives locked together
and remained on the track. The pos.
tai and baggage cars went over the
embankment down into the lake Two
railway mail clerks in the postal car
we're shaken up. Their car landed
right side up and began to I'LL with
: water, but they escaped by climbing
= through a window in the roof and wad
ing ashore. The men in the baggage
and express car had a like experience
except that a heavy safe broke loose
in the fall and smashed through the
side of the car. The passenger coaches
were considerably damaged, but re
manned on the track. Several passen
gers were thrown down by the shocl
/, or cut by flying glass.
: Driver Wall. of the express. wa.
caught in the mass of twisted iror
and was scalded to death by escaping
= steam. Fireman Oakley was throw
or jumped from the cab and wai
e drowned in the lake, where his bod,
was found in six feet of water. Fire
= man Hill was burned to death an,
$ Brakeman Thorp was killed outright
Il Another brakeman of the freight traiI
e is missing, and the lake is being drag
Il ged for his body.