The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-01-03


negro train porter and about thirty
Mexican iaboTers lost their lives. and
fifty-five persons we're injured, when
two passenger trains on the Chicago,
Rock Island & Pacific railroad collided
head-on four miles west of Volland,
Kas.. at $40 o'clock this morning.
The Dead.
julius Bermeister, Davenport. Ia,
aged IS.
William T. Miller. Soldier City, Kan.
Albert Link, Topeka, Kan, colored
porter.
Frank sayre. passenger. New Lon
don. Mo.
Mexican laborers numbering sup
Tosedly between twenty-five and thirty
persons.
Unknown white man from Mitchell,
Ia.
Fatally Injured.
Holyon Alverioo, Mexican Iaborer.
left leg broken, left arm broken, in
jUred internally and badly crushed.
Bertalla Ybarra, Mexican laborer.
head crushed, left leg fractured right
leg so badly crushed that amputation
was necessary.
Seriously Injured.
r. A. Hicks. 2s16 Tracy avenue.
Kansas City, Mo-, injured internally,
knee hurt.
William Douglass. Nevada, Mo-. COL
lar bone broken, right ankle dislocated
and fractured, head bruised.
G. Harrison, baggs geman. Kansas
City. Mo-, head cut and hurt inter
nally.
e. II. Dauchy, assistant engineer. left
ear badly torn right leg crushed, right
ankle dislocated. head bruised
w. A. Willett Peabody. Kan. arms
burned, one rib broken, back sprained.
William T. Miller was riding the blind
baggage and was crushed TO death.
A man who has just returned from
the scene of the wreck says that over
thirty persons were burned to death.
It is impossible 10 identify the dead
Mexicans.
Met on Sharp Curve.
The trains were Nos 90 and 30. run
ming between Chicago and El Paso
They met on a sharp curve with fearful
impact. Adding 10 chc horror of the
collision. fire from the lamps in the
cars and from the locomotives, was
communicated to the splintered wreck
age and spread rapidly. consuming five
OF the forward cars oi train No. %.
westbOund. and burning a number of
the passengers. All but three of those
who persisted are thought to have been
Mexican laborers. who were on .heir
way from Columbus Junction, Ohio. 70
Mexico.
Boy Operator Blamed.
The officials OF the company place
the blame on John Lynes. the 19-year-
old telegraph operator at Foiland. who
failed TO stop train No. % at his sta
tion after receiving orders to hold it
there until No. 30 had passed. Lynes g
being held by the authorities Of Wau-
baunsee county at Alma for investiga-
ton.
BY the light Of the flaming wreckage.
passengers who were uninjured worked
heroicaHy to save those who were
l,inned fast beneath the mass &c spin
tered timbers anu twisted iron work.
\ The lack OF tools 70 work with i'm chop
ug away, the sides OF the cars was u
great hiudrance TO the early rescue
work
Relief Train Soon Arrived.
In an hour and half from the tine
of the wreck the first relief train. from
Mcfarland, Kas.. bringing surgeons
ard helpers. reached the scene. In the
meantims the rescue work was being
pushed oy volunteers, while surgeons
for miles around promptly responded
20 the calls for their services. Another
relief train from Topeka and two
wrecking trains soon arrived and all Of
the dead and injured that had been
taken from the wreck were brought to
this city. where the injured were placed
in hospitals. Two injured Mexicans
died on the way TO Topeka and Link,
the negro porter, died at Stormont hos
pital shortly after being taken there.
When Link was rescued il was neces-
sary to tear his leg from his body to
Cxtricate him from the wreckage.
Saw Mistake Too Late.
Five minutes before the trains
crashed together the operators for hum
dreds OF miles along the line Of the
Rock Island system knew that the col
lision was certain, as Lynes had wired
from Volland that he had let No %
pass. but there was no earthly means
OF preventing the disaster.
At O'Clock tonight the railroad
company completed a track around tho
wreck and the line was open again.
Number Of DeaG Unknown.
The exact number OF dead will prob
ably never be known. as tho bodies of
number Of Mexicans were completely
destroyed by tho flames and the