New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-08-12
THE PARIS SUBWAY HORROR.
USE OF FIREPROOF CARS WILL PREVENT CHANCE
OF SIMILAR ACCIDENT IN THIS CITY.
Eghtyfor Bodies Taken from the DeathapVchms Piled Heaps
judicial Investigation Begum-Story of the

Paris Aug 11.-Eighty- four bodies have been
recovered and the death list probably will ex-
ceed one hundred in the underground railway
disaster which occurred here last night
The accident, which occurred the Metro
poltan Electric Railway. assumed the proper
tions Of awful catastrophe in the early hours
this morning, when more than fourscore bodies
of the burned and suffocated victims were
moved from the subterranean passage.
The scenes at the month of the tunnel were OF
the most heartrending description-crowds OF
weeping men, women and children struggling
forward in an effort to recognize their missing
relatives and friends Most of the victims
from the middle and working classes
Although the accident occurred at 8 o'clock
last evening, the officials and fremen were un-
able, until early this morning. to descend into
the tunnel, owing to the binding clouds Of
smoke Frequent attempts to enter were made
by volunteers. whom it necessary to rescue.
half suffocated. and carry away TO the hospitals.
At o'clock Sergeant Ahrens. wearing
respirator, succeeded in making the descent. He
remained seven minutes. and brought informa-
ton that corpses were strewn all about the
roadway of the tunnel. Then he collapsed. and
WAS taken. TO thes hospital Twenty minutes
sfater href1an forced their wa thnsug5 the tun-
mel station at Menilmontant, and returned soon
aftarward with seven bodies-two men, two boys
and three women. These persons had been
asphyxiated as their positions showed they had
been cropping through the smoke that filled the
tunnel seeking a way to escape, when they
were overcome The work of bringing up bodies
went on steadily after that under the direction
of the Prefect of Police, NJ Lepine, who sum-
moned large reserve force to hold back the
surging crowd. including the relatives OF the
victims.
BODIES MAsSED IN TICKET OFFICE.
At the second descent the fremen found
great number of bodies in a heap near the ticket
office of the station, where many had evidently
been overcome while waiting to purchase tick
cts They had been surprised by the columns
of smoke and had sought to run back up the
stone stairway leading to the street. A struggle
had ensued, and some escaped, but the others
had been trampled on. One woman had fled into
the ticket office, where her body was found
The ticketselier herself, succeeded in escaping.
At the station OF Les Couronnes the same
scenes of death had been enacted The accident
occurred midway between the stations of Men
ilmontant and Les Couronnes that work
went on from both ends of the tunnel. In ad
dition to the binding smoke the tunnel was
intensely hot as one of the trains slowly
burning. The fremen succeeded in throwing
several streams of water in the direction of the
wreck while some fremen and military engi-
neers at great hazard pushed on inside the
tunnel They brought out two bodies and soon
afterward three more.
Further or, the hremer stumbled upon a great
mass of bodies. These were the passengers of
the burned train. They had fed from the
coaches when the fire broke out and groping
through suffocating clouds of smoke sought the
exit at Les Courtonnes station. The tunnel
makes a sharp turn near the scene of the dis
aster and at the angle the entire of hu-
manity apparently became tightly wedged.
ENORMOUS CROWD AT SCENE.
Long lines of ambulances were brought into
requisition and the bodies were carried to the
morgue and the nearby military barracks.
After daylight the crowds at the entrances TO
the tunnel increased to enormous proportions,
Obging the police to form a solid Gordon
through which were admitted only those seeking
to identify their relatives among the victims.
The failure of many men, women and children
to return home in the night gave many the
first news of the catastrophe. Fathers and
mothers came hurrying to the mouths of the
tunnel TO try to find the absent ones.
NJ Lepine summoned large force OF doctors
and municipal officials. who superintended the
removal of the bodies. The number of bodies
brought up from the angle where the mass was
wedged was so large that four and eight bodies
were placed in each ambulance. Many OF the
victims had nanoheEchlSIs sIulASu III 1iAei4
mouths they having evidently tried TO keep
out the asphyxiating smoke. The faces of the
dead were red and congested Some women
still held their children tightly in their arms.
AS the iremen brought out the bodies agoniz-
ing cries went up from women and children who
recognized their dead husbands and fathers.
The clothing of the victims indicated that they
were almost entirely second class passengers.
There were however. several first class coaches
on the trains and IL is believed that their
cupants were also among the victims. The body
OF one of the women handsomely dressed.
while two among the male victims were evil
IDENTIFY persons Of Importance.
CHILDREN DIE IN MOTHERS ARMS.
About a. m the bodies of ten women were
brought out. They had evidently been together
in the female compartment. and had sought to
c~~.s--. ~. 5000 r.....