The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-02-21
-FOUR CREMA7ED IN
HOOSAC TUNNEL
COLLISION
Express Crashed Into Rear Car
of Disabled Freight
VICTIMS ALL TRAINME N
Railroad Officials Unable to Explain
Why TWO Trains Should Come
Together -

Four men are dead, cremated IN
uoosac tunnel in the second accident
TO a passenger train that ever occur
red in that famous hole through the
mountain. They are: IL
Engineer Archer i. Simonds Oh
in charge of the cleo
trio motor drawing train NO 2, east
bound.
learning 10 operate the electric motor
under Mr. Simonds.
Reuben r. Kent OF North Adams,
rear brakeman on extra freight 1000
east bound. 40
Henry Gregg, of Scotia, N. " nre-
man. oon,.,o,
at the result Of rear-end colnslon
between an east-bound express On
the Fitchburg division of the Boston
and Maine railroad, which entered
Hoosac tunnel at AIS yesterday al
ternoon. and the rear end OF an extra
freight which was stopped in the
tunnel about 1000 feet inside OF the
east Mortal. the crew of the electric
motor which was drawing the en-
CINE and the express train ana tne
roar brakeman OF the freight, whom
the Messenger train had stopped 10
pick up and who was riding IN 'ne
motor. died a horrible death.
The accident upset the coal stove
in the caboose of the freight tram
and this eventually set fire 10 the
wreckage. SO slight was the shock
OF the collision that the steam loco
motive attached TO the express Tram
which was being drawn by the cleo
trio motor was not In the shghtes'
degree damaged. not even the neau'
lights broken, but the electric motor,
according to those who were immed-
lately on the scene was total wreck
an far as the forward end was con.
cerned Conductor Rathbun stated
that when the motor approached the
rear of his train that there were three
men plainly visible to him through
the windows Engineer waiter
Blackall OF Greenfield who was III
the steam locomotive of the express
train after the collision, got out and
ran 10 the mass of wreckage in whici
nj that time there was no fire. Con
ductor ]. II. Whitcomb OF LittletoI
in charge of the express train immed
lately upon realizing the disaster rar
back into the tunnel seeking tee
phone from which to notify the rail
road officials at North Adams
Blackall seeing that one or twt
men at least were hopelessly pinned
under timbers In the front of the mo
tor and unable to discover any lii'
in their bodies. backed his train
couple of hundred feet. detached his
engine and ran forward TO the motor
which he attempted with all the pow
er of his steam-driyen engine to draw
from the mass OF wreckage, whiel
was beginning to smolder. All tn
mower that he could give his machine
was insufficient to separate TN
wreckaee. which eventually became
the funeral pyre OF four railroad men
While Blackall was doing this, Con
ductor Whitcomb had got word U
North Adams and one OF the brake
men of the freight had run {
the east portal with news OF the accl
dent. Physicians, fremen, police AM
railroad wrecking crews were sun
moned instantly by the authorities.
The scene In the tunnel beggar
description unless reference wer
made to Dante's Inferno.
Apparently the Goals In the stow
I'm the caboose OF the freight train sc
FIRE soon after Blackall made his des
perate attempt to drag from IN
wreckage the bodies OF his fellow
railroad men. From that time on 10
, hours the eastern half OF the tunnC
was a veritable hell. With the blai
ing freight cars with flames uncoI
troled and impossible TO approach
! the rocks OF the roof and sides wer
heated to n white heat, and immens
sections OF the roof. affected by tn
heat, fell with n series OF crashe
which were heard for a mile or NOR
:, In the tunnel. The iiremon and IN
wrecking crews were unable to ~
near enough 10 the blazing motor an
the burning car OF hogs and the othS
|, cars at the rear end OF the treigl
train. which Il was impossible to ha'
l. out. to do any work toward extinl
) ulshlng the FIRE. Members Of th
; wrecklng crew OF the railroad In th
heat which was intense carrying the
lanterns and torches repeatedly rus
, ed as near as possible for human III
I to exist in the heat to have the
! lights extinguished by the lack
= oxygen.
Trainmaster Bourne when aske
y last evening for an official statemei
; gave out the following: Train No
entered the tunnel at 4;15. Il VIZ
y drawn by motor 1904 Of whom q
engineer was A. l.. Simonds OF WI
|, Jamestown and his fireman was ma
7, named Gregg. They had with the
In the motor A. ~ Davis Of Gree
Geld who was learning to operate q
y electric motor under Simonds instr
Il ton. When at point east OF II
central shaft they were Jagged an
q picked up Reuben T. Kent OF Mort
:, Adams. who is rear brakeman on e
u ira freight 2633 eastbound. The
moved forward under control an
2 about half a mile from the east pc
tai FOR some reason or other now "A
known TO the authorities they COLL
q ed with the rear end Of the frelgl
train. -Four men are dead. all RAJ
vi | - ~ NAA nnaaa