The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1912-04-26
The Odessa Wreck.

The Interstate Commerce Commits.
sion Inspector Makes Final
Report on the Colum.
biau Collision.
That the rear end collision on the
Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul road
At Odessa, Mimi, on Dec. Is, last,
was caused by "The failure of Flag
man Law to properly protect his
train" is the finding Of H. w. Belk-
nap, chief inspector of safety ap-
pliances of the interstate commerce
commission, whose report was made
public last week.
"a contributing cause,' continues
Mr.. Belknap, twas Train Dispatcher
Noonan's directing the operator at
Junction Switch to clear second No.
Is when he knew that first No. Is was
not u of the block. Three other
persons are also at fault: Conductor
White, for permitting his train to
enter the block, known by him to be
occupied, without . permission card;
Operator Monteil. for allowing second
No. IL to enter a block known to be
occupied, without . permissive card;
and Operator Adams, for leaving his
signal in the clear position while TAX
ing an order from the dispatcher and
before first No. l8 was ready to pro-
coed.
ga few weeks prior to this accident
the commission investigated another
accident on another division of this
railroad Both Of these investigations
indicate that the rules of the company
are not properly understood by the
employees nor enforced by the officials.
Steps should be taken at once to sec
that the employees have a working
knowledge of the rules and that they
obey them
OF the employees mentioned in the
report, Train Dispatcher Noonan was
stationed at Aberdeen, S. D., White
was conductor of the second section of
train No. Is, Operator Montiel was
stationed at Junction Switch, the next
station west of Odessa, and Operator
at Odessa.
The accident was a rear-eud collision
between the first and second sections
of train No. Is, known as the Colum-
bian, which runs from Tacoma, Wash.
to Chicago. The accident caused the
death Of eight passengers, the conduc.
tor of the dining car and a cook, while
minor injuries were received by fifteen
passengers, four employees who were
on duty at the time, three firemen who
were deadheading, and one stenogra-
pher in the employ Of the company.
The majority of the fatalities occurred
in the east end of the sleeping a
Beverly" due to the fact that it vas
telescoped by the west end of the din
ing car.
Inspector Belknap's report shows
that the first section of train Is was
held up at Odessa by a stop signal
and that the second section came along
before the first section had left the
station, crashing into the real of that
train.
The inspector makes the following
report of the testimony Of Flagman
Law, who is held responsible for the
accident.
''FIagman Law stated that after the
train stopped at the station platform.
the conductor came back through the
train and told him that if he heard
second No. Is coming to run back and
throw the passing track switch and
then flag the train. After securing
his overcoat, he vent back a short dis
lance and walked back and forth in
the vicinity of the house and passing
track switches about 500 feet from the
rear of his train. When asked why
he went back at all, if his statement
Of the conductors tagging instruc-
tons vas correct, he stated that he
heard q whistle in the distance and
did not know whether it vas second
No. Is or a freight train which his
train had passed at a previous station.
He further stated that it was the prac.
tice while standing at stations to de,
pend upon the block signals to hold
following trains, and he thought that
the train would be amply protected if
he should go back as far as the out
side switches or yard limits.
son account of the straight track
beyond the slight at Odessa, he
was sure that he would be able to stop
any approaching train without diff
Guilty or else let it in or the passing
track, as from actual experience he
knew that when standing at Odessa he
could see the electric headlight Of an