Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-08-30
WAS NO WARNING OF THE. DISASTER
Men Had Just Quit Work for Day
and Were Making Their Way
Homcward When Accident Occurred
and They Made Desperate Efforts to
Reach Land But Most of Them
Went Down With Bridge.
nv Associated Prcss.l

QUEBEC Aug. 29.-Thc great
Quebec bridge collapsed late this af-
tcrnoon, and now the vast mass OF
steel lies a tangled wreck across the
Lawrence channel. A careful csti-
mate places the loss of life ut 81.
The p.idge fell at exactly 90 minutes
to six this evening, just as many of
the workmcn were preparing TO leave.
The accident was so terrible in its
effectiveness in wiping out the lives
of the men employed, that very little
is known as to the cause of the
disaster
The bridge was about mile and Il
half in length and half of 1t, from the
south shore to midstrcam, crumpled
up and dropped into the water.
Ninety men were at work OH this
section of the structure and the wills.
tie had just blown at $3.50 for the
men to quit work for the day when
there came II grinding sound from
the portion of the bridge in mid
stream. Tho men turned to see what
had happened and IN instant later
The cry went up, The bridge is fail
ing"
Tho men made rush shoreward
but the distance was too great for
them to escape. The fallen section
Of the bridge dragged others after ii.
The swapping girdcrs and cables
booming like crash of artillery. Ter
ror lent flectncss to the feet of the
frightened workmen as they sped
shoreward. but only few OF them
reached safety before the last piece
of iron work on the south shore was
dragged into the river.
Near the shore the wreckagc of
the bridge did not 20 below the sur
face of the water and eight workmcn
who remained above water were res.
cucd and taken 10 the hospital mt
Lewis.
Steamers Narrow Escape.
Tho steamer element had Just
cleared the bridge when the first sec
ion fell. The water thrown up by
the debris went clear over the fridge
Of the steamer. The captain mt once
lowered boats. The small boats piled
backward and forward over the sun
ken wrockagc for half an hour. but
there was no sign of life. The twistcl
iron ana steel had its victims i'm "A
terrible death grip. A few floating
timbers and the broken strands of
the bridge toward the north shore,
were the only signs that anything
unusual had happened. All the men
drowned were employees of the Phoe-
niXvillc bridge Company and sub
contractors of Quebec and Montreal
Sixteen Bodies Recovered.
At 10 o'clock tonight sixteen bodies
had been picked up and of the eight
men in the Lewis hospital two arc
not expected to live throughout the
night
The Quebec bridge was begun about
seven years ago, and it was to be
finished in 1909 Subsidies had been
granted by the Federal ana provin
cial governments, and the city Of
Quebec, and the estimated cost of the
work WAS $4,000 OOO. The Phoenix.
vile Bridge Company of PENNSYLVANIA
had the contract for the construction
Of tho bridge and were working from
both sides OF the river
The horror of the situation is in
creased by The fact that there arc
a number of wounded men pinned in
the wrcckage near The shore. Their
eroans ana shrlcks can be plainly
heard by the crowds who have gather
ed nj the waters edge, but nothing
so iar can be done to relieve their
snrfcrings. There are no search
lights available and by the feeble
light Of lanterns Il is impossiblc TO
even locate some of the sufferers.