Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-12-11
SEVEN DIE IN RIVER,
Twenty Others Hurt In Bridge
 Collapse In Pennsylvania.
GREAT DAMAGE TO PROPERTY
Floods Carry Away Bridges and Loco- motives, Wash Out Railroad Tracks and Cause Suspension of Work In Many Mines and Mills.

BlOomsburg, Pa, Dec. 11.-High wa ter caused the collapse of new bridge in course of erection over the west | branch of the Susquehanna river at Miff1inville, eight miles north of here, and resulted in the death of seven men and the injury of nearly a score CT oth- CTS, two perhaps fatally. Forty men were at work on the traveller on the middle span of the structure when it collapsed. They were all thrown into the swollen river.
 The dead are: A. w. Fans, Selins Grove; Charles Creitzer, Selins Grove; Adam Nuss. Selins Grove; Adam Tritt, Beaver Valley; Irwin Updegraff, Georgetown; Willard Bowman, Mifiiin- vile. and George B. Faux, address un- known
 The most seriously injured are: Will liam Boyer, New York; Ray Sherwood, Meshoppen; Percival Reighterback, Howard Reighterback, William Mover, Luther Eckerd, Cecil Sharar, Newton Dalton, Harry c. Goodling, John See scholtz John Fisher, William Weiking and Jacob Johnson.
 The collapse of the bridge was caus- ed by the rapid rise in the river. The water rose during the day at the rate of almost one foot an hour, and debris carried down the stream by the floods struck the false work of the bridge and caused its collapse. This theory is supported by the testimony ot one of the workmen, who says that large tree trunk struck the false work just before the bridge fell.
 The accident occurred when the men were preparing to abandon their work. As a result the work of rescuing those who were thrown into the water and i caught in the mass of twisted iron and steel was greatly retarded. The second span of the bridge was being erected, and it was this section that fell with i the big traveller. The bodies of four of those killed were found floating on
 the surface of the water entangled in the bent and twisted girders and iron
 work. but the others have not been
 found.
 Many of the men were caught in the
 rapid water and carried a mile or more
 down the river before they were res i cued. One of the most miraculous es-
 capes was that of William Nesbit. who
 was caught in the ironwork and held
 a prisoner for an hour with his mouth
 and chin above water before being res
 cued
 The bridge was being built by the state to replace one carried away in q
 freshet in 1903. The county authori- ties refused to rebuild it. and 1t was ; only by the passage of the Rose bill in the legislature of 1904 that the state was authorized to put up the struc- ture. Superintendent Lawton. in charge of the construction and who was on .. the bridge when it fell says that he , has not been able to ascertain the , cause of the collapse.
 At Hudson. a mining town. the sur
 face over an abandoned mine of the Delaware and Pinebrook colliery be- gan to cave in. and water rushed into
 the workings in torrents. Operations . in another section of the mine were suspended. and nearly 300 men and boys were hurried out of the mines The settling of the ground occurred along the line of the Delaware and Hudson and New Jersey Central rail
 roads. and 200 men were put to work
 changing the course of the stream in
 order to protect the railroads and pre- Y vent the flooding of the mines. F. The water is reported high in the '- mines at HazletOn. At Jeansville the l. town was partly flooded by the break ,, ing of q small reservoir. The tracks of the I.ehigh Valley Traction company were washed away in several places ,. throughout the territory.
 ~ The I.ackawanua river Is oVeriioweO at Scranton. and much damage has o been wrought in the valley from Car s boudale to Old Forge Trains on the h Erie and the Delaware and Hudson l. railroads north of CarbOndale wer' @ abandoned for the day because oi
 NsEuOutN. AN May tt4t AlHNA haA-
 broken it's banks and is cutting a new
 channel through the lowlands. N ,- great was the danger of flooding tha F. the GIenwoOd mine ceased operations l. and inc men were ordered out of th' r. woraings.
 '- In the city of Scranton two new Il bridges were tadIy damaged. I'm n false work WIS washed away. permit l. ting the structure to sag. A bridg' u was washed away at Blakely with ; locomotive on f. and a small dam a
 Chinchilla gave way
 Fishing creek in Columbia count,
 overfOwed its banks. and fifteeI
 bridges belonging to the Pennsylvania lt Lumber company al IamieSOn Cit 1i were washed away. tO-ctheT with sev se praI hundred thousand feet Of lumie- ' The works of the Union Tanning C7IIl pany are flooded. and the town Of Ben '. ton is in danger of being washe, ], away.
 . lin the lower anthracite region Paxi
 nos iS cut of from surrounding town
 by the aOsd- and at GiIbeTton half
 dUzen colIieries s,1spcn1ei 09eTatiO1s
 The little Tehiza az AIIeafSEn 0vsE r- flowed its lIazks. and a number Q . mills and fzcfogfes were cI0sei down :, Prsu-o-iz Takes Edward Hicks Mag
 New Yo-E- Tlec- II--EslEaTH Iics
 Maxin. former -pEsSi4eaf of SwarEi
 r7orp college in PeunSyTvzn5z- die1 zf
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