, 1923-09-28

and owner of tho Wyatt hotel gave
the Casper railroad office the first
news of the wreck. He was a Pull
man passenger and walked back a
mile to a telephone IN the highway
TO convey the information. The res
cue train reached the scene of h
wreck about IL o'clock.
Dan ]. Mcouade. 1910 Milwaukee
street. Denver, and Industrial engi-
neer with the Taylor Instrument
company. who was a Pullman a
started for aid as soon as h
wreck occurred. He found the Chi
cago and Northwestern station at
Big Muddy and phoned the news TO
tho mayor of Glenrock at about the
same time that Mr.. Wyatt was CIV
ing the information to Casper.
Describing the wreck this morning
no said hat It was a picture OF hor-
ror and tragedy.
piled up cars, screaming people
and the lightning flashing through
the rain. made n hell that / will
never forget, even though I have
been in three bad wrecks" said N1r.
McQuace IN discussing II.
The wreckage is piled I'D In a
grotesque heap on its side covered
by the waters OF the crock. the loco
motive. day coach and smoker. The
pullman originally hung suspended
on tho east bank but finally toppled
over into the stream. The baggage
car stands on end across the loco
motive ON the east bank. The bag
Eage car is a pile OF wreckage.
II. ID. Bellrose OF Denver, first re-
ported today az among the missing
was located at Glenrook. Bellrose
was in the Pullman hat went I n the
ditch and was thrown out into the
water. Swimming in the dark he
was washed into tho Platte river a
short distance away and there grab
bed a floating tic that enabled him
to reach the bank.
Gus @. Phillips of Barber, Okla.
also had a narrow escape Fighting
his way out of a submerged coach
he crawled over the engine to reach
the east bank and was badly burned
He is receiving attention at Glen
rock.
1t is entirely probable hat several
victims of the wreck were washed
down stream and will never be re-
covered.
The creek into which the train
plunged without warning after leav-
ing Casper at s:s5 last night is or
dinarily dry. but had been swelled
TO the proportions OF a river by a
cloudburst which followed heavy
rains that had continued for the
from the Colo creek crossing of the
fro mthe Cole creek crossing of the
railroad is the Platte river. East
OF the creek is tho station of Lockett
and Just west OF the scene of the
tragedy is the station OF Fry.
The bridge gave way. according
to best reports before the engine
was far out on the structure. The
baggage coach followed, apparently
sliding into the torrent IN sop OF
the locomotive and breaking wide
open as It lunged to tho far side
of the creek. The smoking car. in
which the greatest loss OF life Is
believed to have occurred. was com
pletely submerged and swung
around parallel to the stream. This
coach helped TO save the lives of
some in the chair car, m end of
which was lifted out Of the water
by resting on the smoker. Only
one Pullman went into the flood
and three travelling men in the
smoking compartment. along with
the porter, are reported to have
been sealed in n death trap as the
long coach came 10 rest on the
bank of the creek with one end in
the water. This constituted the
only loss OF life in the Pullmans.
George Evenson, a railroader
who was a passenger in the real
Pullman. described the wreck as
one of quiet horror in which the
cries OF the victims, IL there were
any, were stiflod and smothered by
the flood waters that closed over
them.
THE first intimAtion 1 had that
all was not right was when the
train gave n lurch and slowed Ut
rapidly" he said. IT braced myself
for a crash but instead one lurcf
followed another, evidently caused
rs the several coaches followed the
engine into the ditch. At the third
iureh the lights in the Pullman
went off.
I unscrambled myself along with
tho others in tho Pullman when
the train came to n stop and as
stepped off the car heard two cries
from the water. These screams
were all I heard.
"As / n up 20 the bank in the
darkness there was no sound but the
water rushing over the cars that had
piled into tho stream. No light
was available and It was difficult
TO find out exactly what had hap.
pened."
Rescue and work trains were
rushed from Casper to the scene OF
the wreck. doctors and nurses being
recruited wherever available. but
the services they were called upon
to perform were Largely OF a minor
nature. Few OF tho Pullman occu.
pants were injured. Cuts and bruises
were dressed. Tho only person re
ported seriously injured Is said 10
bo r. 1. Gearhart OF Denver. now
I'm a hospital at Parkerton,