The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1904-08-09
SHIFTING SANDS
COVER MANY BODIES
Colorado Disaster One OF the
Worst in History.
Victims We're Drowned Like Rats
Most of Them Lived in Neigh
boring Cities.
40 BODIES ARE RECOVERED


Of the Worlds Fair Flyer on the Den
YER and Rio Grande railroad near
Eden, seven miles north of Pueblo,
proves TO have been one of the great
est railroad disasters in the history of
the county. Two crowded passenger
cars and . baggage car were engulfed
in the torrent that tore out trestle
spanning Steele's Hollow. otherwise
bnown a. Dry Greek, and, so far as
known tonight, only three Of the &C.
cupants of these cars escaped death.
Fortunately. two sleeping cars and
diner, completing the train, remained
ON the track at the edge Of the abyss,
ana none OF their occupants was
killed or injured.
How many persisted probably will
never be definitely ssoertained for the
treacherous sands are difting over the
bodies. Searching for the dead was
begun about midnight on q large scale,
and still il in PROCESS. All corpses
found were brought TO Pueblo and
placed in four morgues here. Last
night seventy two bodies had been re-
covered. and Of these tifty-elght had
been identified. Daring the day bodies
we're recovered all the way along
Fountain river from the scene of the
wreck TO this city.
None OF the bodies is badly mutt
lated, and all are in such condition
Is 90 be recognizable. Many identin-
cations have been made by articles
found on the bodies OF persons viewed,
persons recognizing features.
Masses of earth had caved in from
the sides of the river at many places.
and large number Of bodies were
dug out Of the sand. Some of the
bodies were found lodged in shrubbery
along the banks aud others in the
wrecksge in midstream.
without doubt the great majority
were drowned when the cars were
plunged into the swirliDg water,
thirty I've feet deep and 100 feet wide.
The walls OF the so-called Dry Greek
are irregular. but still so narrow that
it is almost impossible to understand
how the great coaches, the baggage
car and tender could have been swept
80 far without becoming lodged
against the sides. Most of the bed Of
the creek is now visible with little
streams waving about the strips Of
sand, forming islands of mud and
sand when are being searched for
bodies that may lie buried in them.
Whether the engine and the torrent
of water from the cloudburst struck
the bridge simultaneously, or the tor
rent had already undermined the
struct ure. is not known, but the re-
ports ut the Denver office say that the
air was turned on and this saved the
diner and sleepers from being precipi-
tated into the creek. II the water
was at high mark the depth ranged
from twenty to twenty five feet and
the current was irresistible.
When the baggage car. smoker and
chair car left the tracks and plunged
into the stream they we're swept
down by the current and the trucks
torn off. This hghtened them and the
volume of water can be understood
when it was reported by Superintend-
emit Bowron that they were carried
four miles before they came ashore.
The three cars were found near each
other.
The rescueIs suffered great hard
ships, many OF them having been oon
stsntly at work in the cold rain for
hours without food or relisf of any
kind.
At IL o'clock yesterday the river
began receding slowly, and bodies
were discovered on sand bars partially
covered by the mud. They were
brought to the city and placed in the
morgue.
The disaster was the worse that has
ever occurred on the Denver and Rio