Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1923-08-28
ACCIDENT At
.NlTAWAN TODAY
az
Lives Saved by Steel Cars
Locomotive 0verturnS and
Digs Into Dirt
NO ONE is HURT
Engineer and Firemen Have
Miraculous Escapes-Both
Remained at Post
NO ONE is HURT

MATAWAN, Aug. 2S.-Steel cars
were the means today of saving loss
Of life and preventing serious IN
1tsry to passengers on Pennsylvania
Railroad train No. 704, operating
over the New York S Long Branch
railroad, which left the rails a few
hundred feet south of the passen-
ger station here. The accident oc-
Cured on the top of a thirty-foot
embankment and the fact that the
engine plunged from the rails on
the west side of the track is all that
prevented the train from rolling
down the bank to the water below.
No one was injured although the
engine took nose dive into the
earth and toppled over on its side
and the tender, or coal car, rested
upon the observation platform of the
Pullman Fall River, which was next
to the engine. The train left Lonl
Branch at 1922 and was due in Jer-
sey City at 8:38.
Up to a late hour this morning, it
had not been definitely decided what
caused the accident. Some of those
who viewed the wrecked train were
of the opinion that a switch was
responsible for the jumping of the
engine, while others pointed to the
fact that the ties had been cut for
considerable distance before the
switch was crossed and that the
bolts holding the rails showed
something had dropped down from
the engine and dragged along the
track for several feet. sheforA the To-
comotive left the rails.
No one could explain how the en-
eneer and fireman who stuck to
without iniIIrV.
The cab of the engine and front of
he tender were jammed tightly to-
eether and after the train came to
stop the engine crew crawled out
md were the coolest of any who
lad been on the train. The engineer
vas John Z. Cosse, of Point Pleas-
ant and the fireman, Ezekiel Shllpla
Of Belmar. The conductor Oh tne
coaches was T. j. Mulcany, of AS
bury Park, and the pullman con-
ductor J. C. Curtis of Point Pleasant
the tender of the engine rested on
the observation platform of the pull
man car. and although the steel
work on the car was damaged to
considerable extent, the fact tnat
the car was of steel constructor
kept it from being telescopeo anu
thus saved the lives OF four pasSen Ona
gers who were riding in 1t. one
Of the strange things in connectlon
with the accident was that with the
exception of the glass in the doors
of the cars, no windows Were proken
and the glass in the observation
platform of the pullman was not
even cracked.
The wreck tied up both the nortn
and south bound tracks or the new
York & Long Branch railroad anu
it was o'clock before arrangements
ha dpfnIITlnR of trains
over the tracks of the Freehold ana
Atlantic Highlands division OF the
Central Railroad of New Jersey and
thence hack onto the tracks OF the
New York & Long Branch at the
Messenger station here. In order 10
make this detour both the engines
and cars had to be run about
to turn them around ana thls &C
cunied from fifteen to twenty MIN
ufes. All trains operating on the new
York & Long Branch had to be ue-
toured. Although tho wrcckers ar
rived about an hour after the accl-
dent. 1t was said that 1t would Erop-
ably be late tonight before the tracks
could be cleared and relaic so that
traffic could continue. In the mean
time all trains must use the detouE, ,
Several thousand persons, passen-
gers on stalled trains behird. the
wreck, walked to the station mere
and waited for trains to take them
TO their destination. Passengers On
the wrecked train, hurried to tele-
nhones to inform relatives of the
wreck and the fact that they had not
been injured. At about the same spot
last summer the Mermaid, the Cen
trail Railroad of New Jerseys flyer
from Scranton to the shore resorts
also left the rails. No one was in1ur-
ed in that accident.