Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1910-12-20
TROLLEY CAR IS HURLED
FROM TRACK INTO AUTO
Lives % Passengers SnuHed Out and
Passing Young Lady Is Msngled Be-
tween the Two Csrs-Buiidir9s Are
Upset and Windows Smashed for
Many Blocks.

tT,y Associated fress.,
NEW YORK. Dec. l9.--The terrific
explosion of Illuminating gas In he
auxiliary power house at the Grand
Central station. which tore at the
heart and sent tr,mor along the en-
| tire rock backbone Of Manhattan this
morning. caused the death of ten per-
scls. two of them women. the injury
of % others and property damage
estimated tonight ri from 100000
! to 100000.
Fire broke out In the shattered
ruins Of the power house again late
tonight, but with great corps of POI
lice. searchers and firemen on the
scene. the blaze made little Roadway
before checked. 1t was a weird scene
! IN and about the station as the night
| wore on. No additional bodies were
| found. but in hospital Guthrie John
ston. an electrician. succumbed 10 ter
| ribie injuries received In the explo-
sion. bringing the death list up 10 ten.
Windows smSshed by Thousand.
Hurried estimates during the day
placed the damage Mt not more than
half million dollars, but canvass
of the neighborhood showed that few
structures had escaped. Windows
were smashed literally by the thou-
| sand Handsome residence fronts
were decorated with blankets, sheets
newspapers. burlap Or old rags as the
auicke - substitutes for window glass
| Several institutions In the neighbor-
, hood have appealed for aid to effect
repairs and order will not be restored
! for weeks
The Tiffany studios at Forty-fourth
street and Madison avenre. fully half
a mile from The scene OF the catas-
troDae. suffered.
Stained glass windows valued at
$1,000 were SIM she'd
I Albert Seagroatt. the engineer OF
the motcr ear which broke the pipe
! line. was released on parole tonight
at 'he instance of District Attorney
! Whitman. who says there Is no evil
dence 10 warrant his being held.
The injured include laborers and
other employees of the railroad. pc
destrians. bystandars and others In
the vicinity of the accident A pass
ing surface car. carrying seven pas
sengers. was lifted from its tracks
and hurled into an automobile run
ming alongside.
-Four of the seven passengers were
killed outright. but the chauffeur OF
The motor car was only cut and br,Iis-
ed
/ Illuminating Gas ignltes.
I For some hours IL was believed that
I dynamite alone could have wrought
such instantaneous and pulverizing
havoc but late in the afternoon Fire
| Chief Croker said he was convinced
that the whole explosion was due to
"a MIXTURE OF air and Illuminating
gas. used in lighting railroad cars.
, touched of by an electric spark. The
gas had accumulated in the auxiliary
power house from a broken pipe
snapped OF by a runaway passenger
car.
I The force Of the explosion ran north
and south for two miles along The
rocky ridge that is the backbone Of
the island. aud east and west later
ally for mile. Foundations were
Jared. walls were out Of plumb
windows we're blown in by the thou
sand. ceilings came crashing down on
the heads Of those beneath. and the
pavemcnfs we're Uttered with a crisp
tinl.ling fall OF pulverizcd glass that
topped the shoe soles. The full
amount OF damage may exceed the
rough and conservative estimate OF
/ $500. 0s9. The loss to the New York
Central Railroad Company includes
the physical damage done 10 the
power house which vas utterly
wrecked: the delay to construction
work and the damage done to cars
standing mar the power house The
I loss to shopkecpers ana property
owners viii spread over vide range
o. Items. Christmas displays were
blown backward INTO the shops. suck
cd into the street. o. cut 10 ribbon
BY ayinr glass. Whole fronts Of buiid-
inzs were LEI. without window. Ike
sirhticSs masks.
Ho~ Accident Occurred.
A. ncSrly a. car be determined
this = how the accident occurred.
A train load of empty passenger
ca-s. hauled BY an electric motor. In
/ charge 81 kiit-rt SeaEroet:. got out
81 control Of the brakes. crashed into
a steel snG concrete 5ufer post.
snapped the post on and rarnmcd a
I pfc ~ lumber bchind the post into
two and onc-haif inch ras main.
conncciiBz with the taps from Ehich