Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1903-05-07
FAST TRAIN RUNS
INTO DENSE CROWb
Seven Pole. Killed and Many
Injured at a Detroit
Depot
sWARMED ONTO TRACKS
Railroad Guards Unable to Keep For.
eisners Out, and a Fast Incoming
Train Polws Through
Hundreds.
swARMED ONTO TRACKS

Detroit, Mich. May 5.-A day Of
merry making and celebrating by 1850
Polish eXcursionists from Toledo was
brought to a close by a frightful catas-
trophe at the corner of Garfield and
Dequinder streets at $50 o'clock last
evening in Which at least seven Of the
excursionists We're killed.
The list of dead, so far as known, is
as follows:
MRS. HELEN PAL1cK1, As Bronson
street, Toledo.
FRANK ROsINsKI, 1455 Vance
street. Toledo.
WATSON LUDwIcK. 21ss Henry
street. Toledo.
YOUNG WOMAN, about 20 years Of
age, auburn hair and medium height
and weight, unidentified.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN. about &c
years old, frightfully mangled; head
and both arms severed.
TWO BOYS. about 10 and IL years
old, unidentified.
The injured We're all Polish people
from Toledo, some of them being SER
iously hurt. 1t is hoped, however, that
most of them will recover. The in
Ju1ies, so far as learned, are confined
to cuts and bruises with a few in
ternally injured and some people suf-
fering from fractured limbs.
Mary Shafrainsld Of Toledo when
struck had in her arms her 6-year-old
daughter Hattie. Mrs. Shafrainska was
thrown across the tracks and severely
cut and bruised. Since then no trace
has been found of her child.
John Mallleski, whose left leg is bro
ken. has lost all trace of his 1o-year-old
daughter, who was with him at the
time the disaster occurred. The con-
fusion that prevailed about the scene
was so great that 1T was almost impos-
sible to obtain any definite information
until the dead and injured had been
taken care of by the police and doc
tors.
Tried to Kill Engineer.
A cry for vengeance went UP from the
slaughter the Grand Trunk had done.
Some one shouted: Get the engineer;
kill him!" and q rush was made down
the track for the cab of the engine. The
police forestalled them, however, and
an officer guarded each door Of the
cab. The angry Poles stood about and
uttered threats until the flyer resumed
it's trip into the station.
The excursion was given by the Pol
ish Lancers of Toledo, and the crowd
came TO Detroit over the Lake Shore
railroad. The eXcursionists left the
train at the corner of Garfield and De-
quinder streets yesterday morning and
We're met by number of local Poles
and Polish societies who escorted the
visitors to st. Josephat's church. An
entertainment was held later at Har-
monia hail.
About o'clock last night the visit
ors began to gather again at the corner
of Garfield and Dequinder streets to
take their train back to Toledo. Both
the Lake Shore and Grand Trunk
tracks run out from the Brush street
CT. tin,,
licemen stood at the corner of Cam
field street and endeavored to keep the
eXcursionists from crowding through
the gates onto the track. Despite their
efforts hundreds crawled under or over
the gates and walked down the dark
tracks TO await the arrival Of their
train Which could be seen coming slow
ly up from the station.
Plows Into Thousand.
Probably 1000 persons were scat
tered along the tracks for two blocks
waiting TO board the Lake Shore ex-
cursion train and secure seats. 1t was
only few blocks down the track,
creeping carefully along. Suddenly
from out of the darkness came the
Grand Trunk. Chicago and New York
express, known as the Pan-American
Flyer 1t plowed through the mass of
humanity, throwing them to both tides
of the track, bruised and mained, and
grinding a number of them under the
wheels.
Patrolnan Fred Schultz, John Synd.
a prominent local Pole, and a number
of others who We're at the crossing, as
sert that the flyers whistle was not
blown nor was the bell rung. No state
ment could be secured on this subject
at the local Grand Trunk Office last
night.
The flyer was checked and stopped as
quickly as possible and backed to the
scene of the catastrophe, where for two
blocks the tracks We're covered with In
jured people. -Four of the dead were
killed outright by the train and the
others died after being taken to tho
hospitals. The tracks are dark below
Garfield street and lanterns had to be
brought into use to find all the victims.
A neighboring coal office, several neigh
boring houses and the gateman's shanty
at the crossing We're made temporary
hospitals and the wounded We're car
ried into them until the ambulances
arrived a few minutes later.
Every ambulance in the city was
called to the scene, and the injured
We're very soon under the care of sur
geons in the hospitals.
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