The Montana plaindealer. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1906-1911, 1907-08-30
FLOODS At CONNELL
RAILROAD TRACK SWEPT OUT
CAUSING A WRECK.
H. A. Piegner, Riding on Top of Train,
was Hurled to His Death-second
CIoudburst occurred-Heavy Dam
age to Town Of connell-crops Des-
troyed and Property Loss Heavy.

Hatton, Wash, Aug. 26.-Before a
moving wall of water seven feet high
and varying in width from rs to so
Feet, the roadbed of the Northern Pa
cifc between Hatton and Cornell
erumbled away in the coulee so sud
denly that a freight engine pulling a
train ran over the trackless brink IN
awares. H. A. Piegner, riding on top
Of the cars, lost his life.
The track is destroyed in spots for
a distance of several miles, freight
and passenger trains are stalled on
both sides of the washout. The water
swept down upon Cornell and caused
some property damage there, moving
structures so feet from their founda-
tons and scattering debris for miles.
So far a known no lives were lost at
Cornell.
The havoc was intensified by an
other clOudburst following the first, al
though the greatest quantity of water
was carried by the initial deluge.
At 2:30 O'Clock in the afternoon the
first cloudburst discharged its rivers
of water about a mile and a half south
of Hatto2. So resistless was the great
weight of water and so swiftly did it
run that no earth made right of way
could hold and the roadbed literally
melted away. The water then was four
feet deep in the coulee. 1t was just
after the havoc had been wrought that
a freight train had gone about a mile
was overtaken by the flood. Engine
1887 was ditched, dropping more than
20 feet, but the tender remained in
such a position that the cars following
pressed upon the obstruction and nine
were telescoped. On the third car
back of the tender sat Piegner, who
had been warned not to get aboard
the train, as it was not due to stop
at Hatton. His car was loaded with
ties and timbers and the man was
tossed to the ground in an almost in
~eXtricable mass of heavy wood. One
leg was torn off and the other leg
broken and mangled in such a mi
that the bone protruded. The head
brakeman, who was near Piegner, was
for a distance of so feet, his
body clearing the %coulee, also a barb
wire fence and alighting in a grain
field. He escaped, as if by a miracle,
with hardly a scratch. When the en-
felt the engine sinking he call
ed to the brakeman to look out, then
clutched the cab window and dropped
Is feet with the su~pefstructure. When
the engine struck the ground the cab
broke loose, the engineer got clear and
on his feet. The fireman
meanwhile had gone out by the gang
way and landed on his hands and
knees, also unhurt. The fireman was
Immediately sent back to flag another
train coming behind. BY reversing
his lever, the second train was brought
by the engineer to a standtill in time
to prevent crashing into the freight in
front.
Three bridges are out between Hat
and Connell. Wheat in the fields
nearby is destroyed, being crushed to
the ground.
Piegner, the only victim of the rail
road wreck, was about 40 years old
and leaves a wife and family at Con
nell. His wife is in bed, the stork
made a visit three days ago.
There are two other children. Piegner
was in search of work, he told his res
cuers, for he lived an hour and a half
after the timbers were taken from his
body. He asked that he be taken at
once to Connell to his wife and little
ones, but died just before medical aid
reached him.