The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1909-06-21
HAMMOND
MAN TELLS
THRILLER
Will Ray of 212 sibley
Street Was a Passenger
on Ill -Fated Interurban
Car Which Was Wrecked
Saturday.

VIII Roy, PIP Sibley street, employed
in ]. J. Runs hardware store in Ham
mond, gave one of the most graphic
descriptions of the wreck on the South
Shore line, near Chesterton, that has
yet been heard of this terrible catas-
trophe
Mr.. Roy was riding on the eastbound
car when the crash came. The car left
Hammond at SIS o'clock and was not
a regular interurban. but the front of
IT was devoted to express business and
was crowded with male passengers who
were sInoking The eats IN the front
compartment. arranged along side of
wall, were filled with passengers and
there were others standing who were
unable to find seats.
Tells of Occurrance.
Mr.. Roy says that he was in the
main part Of the car and there were two
seats between him and the smoking g
and baggage compartment. Suddenly it
seemed as though the car had run into
a stone wall There was a terrible
crash that sounded like an explosion.
The lights went out instantly.
There was a moment of awful silence
and then the means of the injured and
the screams of women filled the air.
Roy said that he sat there for min
ute. unable to appreciate what had hap
pened.
A woman near him. with a big cash
in the back of her head and her hair
saturated with blood, started to look
for her little girl. A man across the
/ aisle was pinioned to the floor and was
| begging for some one to assist him out
of the car. People all around him were
cut and bleeding, and the smell Of
blood was sickening.
/ Started Bonfire.
i I soon decided to get out of the car
said Roy. and see what I could do tc
help some of the injured passengers
The first thing we did was to start {
} bonfire so that he could see what We
were doing. In the glare of the ligh'
of this fire we started the work of res
cue.
I'VE found the tools that were pro
vided for such an emergency and begar
releasing the injured AS fas as w,
got them out we laid them on th'
ground by the side of the track. Some
times it was necessary to cut ava!
pieces of wood before the passenger
could be released.
Then we began taking the people ou
Of the front compartment and it sool
became apparent to us that the acci
dent was a terrible one. One after an
other we took out dead. They were lai
in rows alongside of the right of way
Some of them had cuts on the head
others had their legs torn off and still
others had their arms broken or Gu
off.
: Il looked at my watch just befor
the crash came and 1T was O'Clock
1t seemed as though the doctors an
assistance would never come. Finally
at about II o'clock, the doctors and
relief train on one of the nearby rail
roads arrived.
Sight of Blood SIcl<eninG.
THE sigh1 Of blood and the cries c
z the injured sickened many of the pas
sengers and they were unable to hel
in the work of rescue. 1t was the mos
terrible thing I ever saw, and I hop
never to go through such an experienc
} again"
/ Two friends who have been visitin
VIII c. Nee of Hammond were in tn
t wreck One. Ray Merriman, was kille
outright and another. Lyle Kelly. wa
= injured The wife of Merriman was
sister of Lyle Kelly and had also bee
; visiting here.