New Britain herald., 1917-07-02
TROLLEY CAR HOPS
 INTO NIAGARA RIVER
Ten Known Killed When Crowd Is Hurled Into Rapids

Niagara Falls, N. Y, July 1.-Two investigations were under way today into the accident in the Niagara riv- CT gorge at the Cantilever bridge yes- terday when a crowded trolley car on the Great Gorge route was thrown from the tracks by washout and plunged over 20 foot embankment into the headquarters of the whirlpool rapids.
 One investigation was ordered by the district attorney of Niagara coun- ty and the other was directed by wire instructions from the public service at Albany. warning that had been given to the railroad that the road bed was being washed out at the point where the accident occurred will be county officials.
 There were no developments today to cause the railroad officials to change their estimate of ten dead, four miss ing and probably dead and 24 injured. In addition to these, it was said, nine persons who escaped injury had been located, making a total of AZ persons accounted for. There is some dis crepancy, however, between this total and the records of the number of per- sons on the car. Unofficial estimates went as high as 60 but the guard at the Lewiston bridge over which the car passed from the Canadian side checked over 49 persons.
 Violet Seastran of Jamestown, N. Y,, who was listed as missing last night, was placed on the list of dead today. Her mother was killed and her father and two sisters were in- iured. Nine bodies have been recov- cred and all but one identified. The unidentified body is that Of woman.
 A washopt, due to recent heavy rains. was the cause of the disaster, which occurred just below the Canti- lever Bridge and sixty feet below the point where the smooth waters of the upper reaches of the Niagara River break into the turbulent waters of the Whirlpool Rapids.
 The car was in charge of Louis E. Crandall, motorman, and Alexander Heron, conductor. It had all but com pleted the circuit of the gorge, hav- ing crossed from the Canadian side Of the river on the trolley bridge at Lew iston. There were more than 50 pas sengers on board, according to esu- mates. The car vas one of the open type. the seats extending from side to side. with steps on both sides the full length of the car.
 All the seats were occupied ana some of the passengers were standing between them and there were others on the rear platform.
 The car was running at a speed or 20 miles an. hour when it struck a
 n half a minute elapsed from the time the motorman felt the first jarrlng sway until the car was bottom up on the edge of the rapids.
 As it slipped down the 20 foot in- cline from the tracks to the edge of the river screaming men and women fought to escape, and some of them were able to get free, but failed to gain a. footing on the steep bank. f There was 8 mad scramble in the shallow water between the wrecked car and the bank. From the river side the bodies of at least two of the passengers were seen to be caught In the swifter waters, and were carried down to the Whirlpool.
 Members of a National Guard reg1- ment who were on guard at the Cant1- lever bridge saw the accident and were first to the rescue. The soldiers slipped down the bank into the river, and worked in water up to their waist getting injured passengers free from l the wreckage and passing them up the bank, where an emergency car had been placed to carry them to the Nia- gara Falls Hospital.
 The supports of the roof on the for- ward part of the car had been crushed by the impact on the rocks in the river bottom, throwing the seats together. This pinioned many of the passengers below the surface of the water, and 1t was in this part of the car that most of the fatalities oc- 1 cured.
 1T believe at least half a dozen bod ies were carried down the river to the Whirlpool" said one of the soldiers l who was tawen to a hospital to recov- l CT from exhaustion. 7.-"When I was running down the railroad tracks l 1 saw out in the stream what seemed to me to be two arms raised above the l surface. Ten feet away from them I l am sure I saw the bright color of @ woman's dress near the surface, and l still further down a man was swim 1 ming in an effort to get out of tho rapids. He disappeared"
 Heron, the conductor. was in the l forward part of the car collecting the l last of the fares. He was thrown from l the running board and crushed to 1 death as the car toppled over.