New-York tribune., 1920-04-13
l Dead, 9 Hurt,
In Collision ON
9th Avenue IT,
Several Others Are Severely
Shaken Up When Express
Strikes Front Car of
Local on Greenwich Street
Passengers Hurled About
Hedley, in Statement, Says
MOtorman of the Local
Ran Past Red Signal

were injured ana several oCherS Sc
verely shaken up when southbound
Ninth Avenue az" express train
crashed into the front car of a local
on Greenwich Street, between Albany
and Carlisle Streets, at 9:2S o'clock
yesterday morning. The local car was
knocked from the elevated structure.
AS it toppled from the structure the
car of the local train was wedged
against the side of the Hazen Building.
The force of the impact shattered the
the debris to the street. The rear truck
of the car hung suspended over the Il"
structure, while the front truck slid
to the ground, the roof of the car be-
ing torn off.
Frederick Eberlein, fortyseven years
old, Of 72 West Eighty eighth Street,
.-s:,o suffered fractured skull. died
last night at the Broad Street Hos
pital The escape from death of the
others is considered remarkable. The
injured are:
Elizabeth Salterman, fifty, 4o8 West
Forty-frst Street, contusions and abra-
sions of the head.
Thomas ]. Moss, forty-four, 319 East
Forty ninth Street, decorations of head.
Robert Page, forty, 258 West 153d
Street, conductor of the local. lacera-
tions of head and body.
John Fulaco, thirty 1853 Hob
son Avenue, decorations of body.
Peter Farana, twenty-nine, 303 West
146th Street, contusions of right ankle.
A. N. Stewart, sixty-hve, II West
Eighty-f fourth Street, contusions of
scalp.
Louis Murphy, thirty-four, $50 West
10th Street, decorations of right arm
aad hand.
I. S. Kunkel, thirty-nine, 236 East
wenty-dfth Street. contusions of arm
and head.
Thomas j. Smith, fifty, SOC Van Cort-
landt Avenue, Yonkers, lacerations of
face.
Treated in Private Hospital
The majority of the injured were
given treatment in the private hospital
of the National Surety Company, in
the Hazen Building, . Albany Street
and were then SEM to their homes
Eberlein went to the Broad Street
Hospital.
Public Service Commissioner Lewis
Nixon said the accident was caused by
the cutter disregard of signals by
Thomas f. Smith. motorman of the
local.
Harry Bunting, of 27s East 2O3d
Street. motorman Of the express train
said he had the signal to proceed
Frank Hedley. president and general
manager of the Interborough Rapid
Transit Company, issued the following
statement:
'At 9:28 a. m six-car local from
l55tk Street. in charge of Motorman
Thomas F. Smith and Conductor Page,
struck southbound Ninth Avenue ex-
press. which was switching from the
confer to the southbound track near
Rector Street station. The right-of-
vay had been given to the southbound
press, the motorman of the local
lunning past the red signal. Motor
nan Smith has been in the service
-Airty-four years without serious ac-
cident"
Office Girls Hysterical
When the crash occurred pedestrians
below the az" structure scampered to
the wrecked car was wedged against
the side of the Hazen Building saved
he lives of the passengers who were
hurtled to the street in a shower of
debris. Girls employed in Offices on
ne lower floor of the Hazen Building
became hysterical when the accident
occurred Onlookers in the street
realizing that the rear truck of the
shattered car would not fall, rushed to
lie assistance OF the injured passen.
gers.
Louis Murphy, longshoreman, o.
$50 West 1l9th Street, fell to the
ground with the roof of the car, bu
was not hurt. He lost his hat and hi:
longshoremen's union button.
An alarm of fire was turned in attic
the accident and brought out severa
companies The fremen gave assist
ance in rescuing the injured persons
from the wreckage.
Public Se5vice Commissioner Nixon
with Deputy Commiss toner's Edward ]
Glcnnon, Alfred NJ. Barrett and Morga
T. Donnelly and corps of inspector
and engineers from the equipment an
transit bureaus OF the commission
made thorough inspection of tn
wreck yesterday afternoon.
Report of Investigators
The preliminary report of the inves
tigators, signed by r. II. Noxson, cleo
trical engineer. reads:
AN examination of the interlockin
machine and signal equipment shove
that all levers and signals we're pror
erly set for the movemnet Of the cx
press train to the local track and ais
to hold the local train north of the sta
tion until the express had discharge
its passengers"
While the damaged condition of tn
brakes made tests impossible, the re
port SAID. they were indicated to be i
good condition, because they had be
come automatically set in emergenc
upon passing the signal and its attend
ant tripper device. The nature Of IN
interlocking device is such that
would have been impossible to thro,
the switches to provide for the cntranc
OF the express train onto the middl
track without automatically setting tn
signal "24L" against the local train.
The report points out that the signal
are spaced for yard operation and tina
the braking distance allowed is base
spon a theoretical speed of about fiy
miles an hour. II this distance ha
been adhered TO the working Of tn
emergency trippers would have bee
such az to stop the train within prope
distance. The report cites that sever;
witnesses indicated that the train wa
operated at much higher speed.