The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1909-06-24
INDIANA WRECK
HORROR GROWS
TEN PEOPLE KILLED AND Al
LEAST FORTY ARE INJURED.
MOTORMAN DISOBERS ORDERS.
Cars Came Together When Travelling
At Rate Of Fifty Miles An Hour
Terrible Scenes at the Wreck.


additional . details of the horrible
wreck on the Chicago, Lake Shore
and South Bend Railroad, in Porter
county, Ind, Saturday night, became
known yesterday and today.
Two Of the big electric cars collided
head-on, and IL is now known that ter
people were killed and at least 40 in
jured.
According to General Manager II
U. Wallace, the wreck was due to 9
disobedience of orders by Motorman
George A. Reed. of the e~astbound car
who vas killed.
Reed received instructions at Gary
to wait at Wilson, a short distance
west Of Baileytown, a point at which
the disaster occurred, for the west.
bound car to pass.
The impact of the cars vas so great
that they were reduced to a mass OF
wreckage.
The e~ast-bound car, running as train
No. SO, IL was stated, was going at the
rate Of 80 miles an hour to make up
lost time. When the crash occurred.
the e%ast-bound car was telescoped and
almost entirely wrecked. In this train
were all of the killed and most Of the
injured, passengers on train Nc. So,
w~est-bound, escaping with slight
bruises and scratches.
Scene Was Terrible.
The scene of the wreck immediate.
ly after the crash was described by
eye witnesses as being terrible. The
two cars were welded together into a
mass Of debris In which lay the 10
dead and dying. and the two score
injured. The cries and appeals for
help were horrifying and caused a
scene Of utter confusion for many
minutes. Soon, however, the cool
headed among the passengers brought
order out of chaos, and while some
arranged to convert the home of E.
r. Borg, nearby, into a temporary hos.
pital and morgue, others turned their
attention to ~rescuing the injured.
Darkness greatly interfered with
the progress Of the %rescuers, and to
make matters worse, the nearest tel
ephone was three-quarters Of a mile
away. Thus 1t was impossible to pro-
cure speedy aid from Michigan City.
Superintendent Welsh, of the inter.
urban line was in Michigan City when
the accident occurred. When he
learned of the collision he discovered
that it would be impossible to run
electric cars to the scene because the
trolley wires had been broken. Three
physicians were sent In a gasoline
traction speeder and three more dis
patched as soon as possible in an au-
tomobiLe. When the physicians ar
rived at the scene Of accident they
found scores of farmers and villagers
rushing about endeavoring to care for
the wounded and to extricate the dead
and dying.
They we're working under Difficult.
ties, the only light being furnished by
a few lanterns procured from nearby
farm houses.
All around the wreck lay the in.
jured, covered with blankets and com.
~forters brought from the nearest
homes.
Reseuers Use Axes.
Many of the wounded were so pin,
Toned in the ~wreckage that it was
necessary to use axes to rescue them
and the sound Of the blows upon the
~splintered wood and twisted iron min.
gled with the cries of the sufferers.
Officials of the Lake Shore railroad
notified the w~est-bound train to take
on doctors and nurses at Laporte and
South Bend and to put them off at
Dune Park. Similar instructions were
given to the crew of the east-bound
train which brought assistance from
Whiting and Indiana Harbor. The
New York and Boston fast express OF
the Lake Shore. which left Chicago at
1890 o'clock. stopped at Dune Park,
arriving at 1880, and took aboard the
wounded. who were carried to South
Bend and Laporte and placed in hos.
pifala