The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1913-01-20
TWO TRAINMEN KILLED AND
ABOUT TWENTY INJURED AT
BRookHAvEN, MISS.
ENGINEER and FREIGHT
CREW HELD RESPONSIBLE
Fatal Error Of FIasman Not Realized
Until Crash came-Dead Men Pin
ned Beneath Wreckage of Freight
Enslne-InIured Taken to N. o.

New Orleans, Jan. 2O.-Two men
killed and probably twenty persons
were injured when the Illinois Central
fast passenger train, known as the
New Orleans Limited, running three
hours behind time, ran into an open
switch one mile north of the station at
Brookhaven, Miss, and crashed into
extra freight No. 81, at standstill on
Ehe northbound track at 7:25 o'clock
Sunday night.
The engine of the freight train was
demolished, being jammed into the
tender. The fireman and brakeman,
who a moment before had climbed
back into the engine cab, were caught
between the boiler and the tender.
The dead body of Cravick, the fire.
man, was found standing upright only
the head showing above the wreckage.
The body of the brakeman e. j. Selby,
was found pinned beneath the tank of
the tender, face downward, when the
corpses were extricated from the
wreckage.
The wreck occurred at the crossing
of the Mississippi Central railroad. No.
81, the freight train. had left McComb
at $50 o'clock Sunday afternoon for
Jackson, Miss, running on an extra
schedule. 1t had reached Brookhaven
about an hour before the wreck, and
the engine had been switching in the
neighborhood. The switch on which
the wreck occurred is long one, lead
ing from the north to the southbound
track. The members of the freight
trains crew had closed the switch on
the northbound track, thus protecting
themselves, but had neglected to close
the switch on the south track. The
switchman had just climbed into the
engine cab, and the freight train was
preparing to pull out when the fast
passenger train swung into sight. The
fast moving train was thrown from its
own rails into those on which stood
IhO iOi6hI Ny ehS OPCu oWitSu. AhO
freight train men did not realize their
fatal error until after the crash.
The dead and injured were brought
to New Orleans on No. 8, the passen-
ger train which arrived here at 8
o'clock Monday morning. The local
physicians Of the Illinois Central were
on hand with ambulances and the more
seriously injured were rushed to the
hospital.
According to a statement made by
Conductor G. o. Lord of the passen-
ger train to officials Of the Illinois
Central Sunday night, at Brookhaven,
the red light was burning clearly on
the south track switch, indicating an
open switch, and the engineer of the
crack fast train should have seen 1t
and needed its warning, said Superin-
tendent Hill of the railroad company
Sunday night He holds the engineer
and the freight crew jointly to blame
for the accident from the accounts
which he received.
The passenger train was made up of
solid steel cars. and this probably pre-
vented terrible loss of life among its
passengers. The point at which the
wreck occurred is down grade slope,
the steepest between Jackson and New
Orleans, and the passenger train must
have struck with terrific momentum.
Just few minutes before 1t had stop
ped at the Mississippi Central cross
ing. and had not had time to regain
its full speed. This also is regarded
as a fortunate feature of the accident
Engine 1925 of the New Orleans Linn
tied was little hurt and proceeded un-
der its own steam into Brookhaven.
The freight engine was demolished.
AS soon as the news reached Brook
haven, Drs. William Neville, division
surgeon for the Illinois Central; |. L.
Parsons, district surgeon and F. e.
Collins, local surgeon, were rushed
to the scene, and Immediately began
caring for the injured. At the same
time a wrecking train. was sent out
from McComb, and by 1926 o'clock