The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1932-04-21
Four Lives Snufed
Out By Collision


Four Lives Snuffed
Out By Collision
Continued From Page One)
Mr.. Dwyer FASTENED to the Kol
an home and aroused Mr.. Kortal
The gentleman Immediately tel,
,honed Deputy Coroner A. F. Moy
,ihan, of this city and the High
way patrol. Jumping into Mr.. Kol
ans truck they FASTENED to tn
Gene of the tragedy. At this poir
Mr.. Kortan will take up the stor
or a time:
When we arrived at the scene
of the tragedy we found the
small truck wedged under the
left rear end of the sub-trailer.
The trailers were parked on
the right hand side of the pave
ment. There was a white light
about the size of a mans hand
about 200 feet back of where
the accident occurred.
There were no lights on the
trailer. Statements have been
made that the end gate of the
sub-trailer was down. This is
erroneous. The gate was clos
ed. The small truck was a
mass of flames, and the bodies
in the truck were burning. One
of the women, whom I have
since learned was Mrs. Weitzel,
did no: appear to be on fire.
She was removed from the
truck. At this time her dress
was not on fire. She was bare
ly alive. She was placed at the
side of the highway some dis
lance from the truck. The 9TH
er occupants were apparently
dead.
1 asked the driver of the
truck to pull ahead so that the
bodies could be removed. He
refused, claiming, as I recall,
that the insurance would be
jeopardised. 1 then attached
my truck to the rear of the
burning car and pulled it back.
When removed from the trailer
the bodies fell out. They were
a pitiful mass of unacceptable
human wreckage. I then has
tened to my home and called
for Undertaken George Berg
green. Deputy Coroner Moyni-
han and the Highway Patrol
man had arrived shortly after
I returned.
1 was Mortified to discover
that the body of the woman
whom I had removed from the
truck had caught fire and that
practically all of her clothing
had been burned from her body
and her lower extremities and
the upper part of her body were
burned to a crisp. During the
time I left and returned a con-
siderable crowd had gathered,
and why no attempt was made
to extinguish the flames on the
woman by the side of the pave
ment is something I cannot un-
derstand.
I talked with the driver of
the truck. He informed me
that the truck, trailer and sub
trailer ahead of him was loaded
with 20 ton of merchandise.
In negotiating the hill to the
= west the clutch on the truck
burned out and he became
stalled. The driver of the 9TH
err truck, a short distance be-
hind, detached his trailers for
the purpose of helping the man
ahead up the grade.
Even after the Ford truck
was removed the only discern
able place where the sub-trailer
was on fire was the left rear
tire. Why an axe was not TAX
en- to knock the tire off is some
thing I cannot understand.
The man in charge of the truck
disconnected the trailers and
removed the one in front a safe
distance to the west.
The trailer on fire was finally
pulled to the east by a truck
owned by the Schmidt COM
pany, kicked into the ditch to
the north side of the highway
and was completely destroyed
with its contents.
The bodies were brought to thi
ity where they were prepared TO
urial.
The entire northwest is shocke'
" the seriousness of this tragedy
The funeral Of Roman Weisse
vas held from st. Patrick's church
delrose, Tuesday morning. Tn
Iaider services were held at 81
soniface church, Melrose Monda,
morning. Mrs. Weitzel was burie'
afternoon. The remain
f Miss Olga Holmberg were takel
rom this city to LaPorte, Mimi
the funeral was held at La
,orte Tuesday.