The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-01-03
For Hundreds Of Miles Opera
tors Knew Far Ahead Of In
eVitabIe Disaster
HELPLESSLY SEE WOMAN
AND BABY BRO|LED ALIVE
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific
Trains Collide Head-on Near Vol
land, kas., Through Young
Operators Mistake.

Topeka Kan, January 2-Four white
men, a negro train porter and about thir-
ty Mexican laborers lost their lives, and
hfty-five persons were injured when two
passenger trains on the Chicago, Rock
Island and Pacific railroad collided head
on four miles west of volland Kan, this
morning.
The dead:
julius Berenmeister, Davenport, Ia,
aged SS.
William T. Miller, soldier, Kansas City.
Albert Link, Topeka, Kan, colored por-
ter
Frank Sayer, Newtondon, Mo.
Mexican laborers numbering between
twenty-five and thirty persons.
Unidentified white man from Mitchell,
Iowa.
The fatally injured: Holy Alvario, Mex
icaa leg broken, arm broken, injured in
ternally; Berlalla Yabarra, Mexican, head
crushed, legs fractured.
The seriously injured R. A. Hicks, Kan
sas City, injured internally, knee hurt;
William Douglas, Nevado Mo-, collarbone
broken, ankle fractured; G. Harrison,
baggagemaster, Kansas City. hurt inter-
nally; E. II. Dauchy, assistant engineer.
right leg crushed, ankle dislocated; w. A.
Wilem, Peabody, Kan, arms, burned, rib
broken.
- v NAM - NH ers y. as iidiug the blind
baggage and was crushed to DEATH
A man who has just returned from the
scene of the wreck says that more than
thirty persons were burned to death. 1t is
impossible to identify the dead Mexicans.
Met On Short Curve.
The trains were Nos. % and 80, run
ming between Chicago and Ell Paso They
met on a sharp curve. Fire from the
lamps in the cars and from the locomo-
five was communicated to the splintered
Wreckage and spread rapiuly, consuming
five cars of train No 20, west bound, and
burning several passengers. All but tnree
of those who perished are thought TO nave
been Mexican laborers, who were on their
way from Columbus Junction, o., to Mex
leo.
The officials of the company place the
blame on John Lynes, 19-year-old tele-
graph operator, at Volland, who failed to
stop train No. 20 after receiving orders to
hold It, Lynes was arrested.
Bv the light of the flaming wreckage
messengers who mere unnjured worked
heroicaly to save those who We're pinned
fast beneath the splintered timbers and
twisted iron work. The lack of tools with
which to chop away the sides OF the cars
was great hindrance
In an hour and a half from the time OF
the wreck the first relief train from Nc
Farland, Kan, bringing surgeons and
helpers, reached the scene. Another re-
lief 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 hos
pitals Two injured Mexicans died on
the way to Topeka and Link, the negro
porter died at st. Ormont hospital short
iy after being taken there. 1t was nee
essary to tear his left leg from his body
to extricate him from the wreckage.
Told of Coming Disaster.
Five minutes before the trains crashed
together the operators for hundreds of
miles along the line of the Rock Island
system knew that the collision was GER
tain as Lynes had wired from Nolland
that he had let No. 20 pass, but there
was no earthly means of preventing the
disaster.
AT 5 O'Clock to night the company
completed track around the wreck, and
THE line is open again.
The wreck occurred on a curve, and
in a cut. No. 29 was running slowly on
J account of the heavy grade and heavy
I train. No. 80 had just reached the top
of the hill when the engineer saw the re-
fiection OF the headlight of the train
ahead. He shut down and the passengers
on his train said they were not running
more than ten miles an hour when the
crash came No. 20 was not going more
than IA miles an hour.
All the dead, except one, were on train
No. 90 As far as is definitely known,
only. two Americans were killed. one
tramp riding the blind baggage of No.
20. and one man in the smoking car with
the Mexicans. There were thirty-seven
were burned to death, the officials say.
seven were put on the relief train and
two died shortly after the train left Nc
Farland.
The injuries were caused more by the
emergency brakes than by the wreck it
self, according to the passengers. The
engineer of No. % set the brakes and al
most every passenger was thrown out
of his seat or berth. Immediately came
the collision. The Mexicans were pin
ioned under the seats and the doors were
jammed so they could not get out.
Fire From Gas Tanks.
In the chair car also many passengers
were held down by the seats The train
caught fire from the gas tanks. The pas
sengers in the rear car escaped in their
night clothes and dressed in the mud be-
sides the track. Then came cries for help
from the Mexicans and the persons pin
toned in the chair car. Every man and
nearly every woman on the train helped
rescue the unfortunates. Seven Mexicans
were rescued from the smoker and then
the flames droves the rescuers back
The injured were removed FROM the
chair cars with less difficulty and ap-
Sjarently were rescued. However some of
the passengers declared that woman
and little girl were burned in the chair
car e. NJ. Sigourney from Iowa, one of
the homeseekers, said:
az saw that woman and her baby. The
aames were all around, but she seemed