Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-02-22
Twenty Freight Cars Burning
Fiercely-Tons Of Rock
Loosened by Heat.
TRAIN is SAVED
Four Railroad Men Killed in the
Collision-Days before Trains
Can Again Operate
through It.

North Adams. Mass. Feb. 20.--With
20 freight cars burning hercely and
sections of rock weighing many tons
loosened by the heat and raining down
upon the tracks, Hoosac tunnel on the
Fitchburg division of the Boston &s
Maine railroad was SO effectively block
ed as the result of a train collision
tonight that 1T will he days in the
opinion of railroad men before trains
can again operate through It, Four
railroad men were killed in the collision
whom a Boston bound passenger ex-
press crashed into II freight.
The list OF dead as made public by
railroad officials follows Archer l.
Smonds. so. Williamstown. engineer
Of electric locomotive on passenger
train; Henry Gregg AZ, Scotia. New
York. assistant engineer: Luther Davis,
90. Greenfield. learner" on electric
engine; Reuben Kemp, 81, North Adams
hagman attached to freight train.
Many of the occupants of the coaches
were badly shaken up. hut there were
no serious injuries.
The accident happened about 800 feet
from the cas-, portal Of the tunnel. about
4:D o'clock. but ii was sometime later
before the news reached North Adams. for
all OF the railroad wires passing through
the tunnel were carried away by the
cr..sh.
TRAIN BACKED OUT OF TUNNEL.
Meanwhile the passenger train which
with the regular locomotive had broken
away from the electric engine with the
first crash was slowly backing away
from the fire and got beyond the central
shaft, where the air was clear. without
difficulty Later the train was backe
out and st seven o'clock tonight three
hours late, was started for Boston over
the Boston & Albany tracks.
The freight train. made up OF 32 cars
loaded with merchandise. went into the
tunnel Just before four o'clock and when
near the further end of the four mile
| shaft was stopped for some reason and
engine; Duben Kemp. 81. North Adams,
| express. He succeeded in stopping til
| express and then got aboard the engine
which proceeded cautiously toward the
freight. For some unexplained reason,
possibly because the brakes refused tu
work, the electric engine failed to stop
when it neared the rear % tho freight
train and moment later there was a ter
| rifle cr;rh ""ts was followed by an
| electric display and burst of flame AMI
| then the rear freight cars took fire.
The engineer of the regular engine on
the express train saw that the only hope
Of saving his passengers from death by
suffocation was to get away from the
spot at once ana he Immediately started
10 back away 1t was not until nearly
seven o'clock that the train finally
emerged into the open air. having beer
held up west of the main air shaft await
| ing orders.
HEAT DRIVES BACK FIREMEN.
When news OF the wreck reached here
Fire chief H. J. Montgomery and A
volunteers were placed aboard flat
car and drawn by Il steam engine sought
to reach the scene but once they had
passed the central air shat; the heal
became so intense that they We're obligec
to turn back long before reaching the
wreck. Meanwhile Superintendent J. u
| Tyler and gang of section men tried
| to get To The fire from the other end
but they We're driven back by the clouds
OF smoke and gas that filled the mouth
Of the tunnel
Shortly before midnight. n gang OF
wreckers went into the tunnel and at
tempted to reach the burning debris
They had got to within about 300 feet
when n car of oil burst into flames
There were a number Of heavy eX-
plosions and smoke. denser than ever
spread through the tunnel. The
wercking crew was barely able to es-
cape. No further attempt Will be
made to get into the tunnel until tho
fire has burned itself ont.