The sun., 1903-05-03
BAD COLLISION ON new HAVEN
BACKING FREIGHT RAMS SMOKER
or PASSENGER TRAIN.
A Dozen Passengers Hurt nj South Nor.
walk. Of whom One Il Dead and An
other IL Dytnk-Freight Brakeman
Biamed for NeEIectins Dwarf signal.

NoRwAIK, Conn, May "A bad rail-
road accident happened on the embank-
ment in the centre OF South Norwalk at
5:6 O'Clock this afternoon. 4 pickup
freight train, in charge Of Conductor Andrew
Mccormick, backed into the 4:35 accommo-
dation from New Haven. which was just
pulling into South Norwalk, the rear car
going clear through the smoker Of the
passenger train and injuring nearly dozen
Of the passengers.
One died almost as soon as taken to
the hospital. while another was gasping
his last. The dead man is Eugene Cavanagh.
Baltimore, and the man fatally hurt
was evidently laborer. He wore a gold
Roman pin, with the initials, l, J. X Those
severely injured arc:
E, ,Sballaman, 500 Fairfield avenue Bridge
port. ladies' tailor at As North main street.
South Norwalk, both legs broken, internal
injuries
T, j. Anderson, Saugatuck, badly bruised
and cut about the left side.
Mortimer Ogden. Fairfield avenue
Bridgeport, right ankle broken. scalp
wound, badly cut about face
George A. Davis, colored, 26 John street,
Stamford, internal injuries, badly bruised.
The cause OF the accident was the back
ing UP Of a freight train without signal
The freight was made up of fourteen
freight cars some loaded and some empty.
Conductor Mccormick of this train comes
up from Harlem River each morning with
an extra and picks up the afternoon freight
at New Haven and goes down at any time
in the afternoon. He left three cars on the
track near the Washington street bridge
and kicked four moro up into the South
Norwalk freight yard.
He had gone back into his track west of
the switch near the standpipe just west of
the Washington street bridge, where he
stood few minutes. Conductor Mccormick
was In the tower at the bridge at the time.
brakeman who was on the top OF box
car next to the end Of the train gave the
signal to the engineer to back up and get
the three cars which had been left.
This movement had Just been attempted
whsn the passenger train came around
the corner from the east. The brakeman
realized his mistake too late. His frantic
signals to the engineer Of the freight were
unavailing. The rear car. which wes an
empty coal car, struck the engine of the
passenger train.
1t scraped along the engine and the COM
bination car which followed it. without
seriously damaging either or pushing them
from the tracks. The second car was the
smoker: The box car entered il at the
car out for twosthirds Of the length. Shall
laman was sitting in one Of the last eeats.
which was demolished. He was found
jAmmed down in the seat with both Of his
leSs fractured.
and the entire passenger train went 800
feet west before 1t came TO stop with
part OF the box car inside.
At the New Haven railroad Office here
1t was said that an empty fiat car attached
to the rear Of the, freight train backing
up on the next track to that on which the
passenger train was entering the station
was derailed just as the train was passing.
und ramned the smoking car, tearing out
section OF it's side. Four day coaches
behind the smoker were derailed, but their
passengers escaped injury.
The freight train was an extra, dropping
cars In the South Norwalk yard. Ii was
lying divided into two sections. on the Sec
ond west bound track close to the station.
The sections had been separated, one on
each side Of cross-over switch, which con-
nected a branch line from Wilson Point
with siding on the north side of the four
through tracks. A switch engine from
the point was waiting to cross over to the
siding, and the tower operator had set his
switches and signals a. far as the outside
westbound track, to send it across as soon
as the passenger train had gone by.
The switch-over across the track on which
the II ght train stood had been set, and
when the engineer backed up, his two rear
cars we're derailed by striking the frog.
Only the last car of the freight struck the
passenger train.
The train, after ffty-eight minutes
delay. continued on to New York. arriving
at the Grand Central Station at 1928 A
freight brakeman named Dowd is blamed
for the accident by the railroad officials.
He sgnalled his engineer to back, ignoring