Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1905-05-11
RAILROAD ACCIDENT

An express train OF me feEnsylVailla
Railroad ran into freight train in
which there were two cars loaded with
dynamite, at l:l0 O'Clock this morning
in South Harrisburg, Pa.. near the plant
of the Paxang Light, Heat and Power
Company.
Three terrific explosions that broke
windows all over the city followed, and
the two trains were completely wrecked
and took fire. 1t is estimated that fifty
persons we're killed and 100 injured.
1t is impossible to ascertain the ex-
act number of fatalities, because the
wreckage, in which many of the passen-
gers and some members of the train crew
are pinned, is still ablaze and unap-
probable, and many small explosions
occur continually.
When the first explosions occurred
bodies were thrown clear out of the
borths in the sleeping many landing
down the railroad embankmeut and some
even having been hurled into the Sus-
quehanna river, which parallels the
railroad in that locality.
All the physicians of the city procur-
able were summoned to attend the in
jured.
A fire alarm sounded and the fire.
men arrived, to find themselves prac-
tically helpless in The work of rescue.
A police patrol wagon was commissioned
as an ambulance, and as many of the in
iured AS possible were loaded into into it
on each trip aud taken to the Harrisburg
Hospital, the capacity of which soon be
came taxed, because of the large num-
Der that were brought in.
A special train was made up and
brought injured and dying to the Union
station. Many Of the injured were
taken into private houses.
Immediately after the wreck all the
passengers who could do so ran from the
scenes of horror to safely from the inces-
SAINT small explosions.
The agonizing cries of the unfortGnates
were hearitrending. The office of the
Paxtang Light, Heat, and Power Com
pany looked like a hospital. At an
early hour the Harrisburg Traction Com
pany ran out a number of cars from
its South Harrisburg barns and used
them to bring the injured to the hospital.
With practically no clothing, many
women and children from the train were
compelled to wander about the fields,
as there are few houses in the immedi-
ate vicinity-of the wreck.
The train was the second section of
No. 10. There we're l69 passengers in
the train, and the latest estimate is that
fifty were killed.
The wreck was caused by smaller
wreck TO the freight train, which was
east bound. Passing the plant of the
Paxtang Electric Company, near Cedar
street, an air hose burst and several cars
in the middle of the train buckled up
and fell across the passenger tracks at
the side.
Almost at the same moment the eX'
press train, with ten coaches, dashed
along and plunged into the wrecked
freight cars. The boiler of the passen-
ger locomotive blew up, and the con-
cussion caused the immediate explosion
of the two cars of dynamite in the freight
train. The force of the collision crushed
all of the passenger cars, which piled up
in a huge mass with those of the freight.
Pathos indescribable characterized
the scenes about the wreck. Husbands
separated from wives and little children
bereft of their parents sought their
friends among the dead and dying.
Sometimes they succeeded in finding
their loved ones among the slightly in
iured, or even among those unscathed,
but many were found among the bodies
in the temporary morgue at the Paxtang
plant. In many instances they tailed
to find them at all, either because the
bodies were still buried in The smoking
debris or were 50 badly burned as to be
unacceptable.
At 4:45 O'Clock this morning it was
authOrtatively ascertaiued that the en-
tire passenger train of nine cars and the
engine were destroyed. Nine freight
cars were also destroyed and three others
derailed and wrecked.
The passenger train, of which not a
valuable square foot was left, had con-
sisted of one locomotive, torn to pieces
when the explosion occurred, six Pull
man sleeping coaches, two baggage ears,
one mail coach, and one engine tender.
The first explosion heard was that Of
the boiler of the passenger locomotive.
This was followed by most terrific noise
when the dynamite car went up. The
car was No. a., 1888 of the Erie Rail
road, and had a cargo of 5000 pounds
of dynamite.
Despite the narrowing occurrence
there were early on the scene, undetect-
ed, many negroes and foreigners, search
ing for loot. The heat was was intense
and the crowd of reputable people so
great that it is believed the thieves Sc
cured but little of value
Practically all of the glass exposed in
windows in South Harrisburg and Steel
ton was broken by the force of the ex-
plosion. Most of the downtown side
walks were literally covered with broken
glass. Glass windows on Market street,
one mile from the scene of the disaster,
were broken.
KILLED BY TORNADO.
Reports over railroad wires to Fort
Worth, Texas, say dispatches from
Snyder, Okla, to the train dispatcher of