Evening star., 1940-08-01
43 Rail Crash Deaths
Laid 10 Failure 10
Sidefrack Coach
GusoIine-EIectric Curs
Eneinemon BIomed for
Not Letting Freight Pass
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
AKRON, Ohio, Aug. 1.-Railroad
investigators today blamed an en-
gineman's failure to follow operating
orders for the fiery death Of 43 per-
sons in 1940's second major train
wreck.
They said failure to sidetrack a
gasoline-electric coach led it to
crash head Ion with a 73-car freight
train near here last night.
The steel coach instantly became
a virtual furnace. Two members of
the coach's crew and a trainman
deadheading leaped to safety. All
the others aboard burned to death.
Five children were among the vic
tins.
The coach's single engineman,
Thomas L. Murtough, 40, was blamed
by l.. M. Wolcott, Cleveland train
master for the Pennsylvania Rail-
road, on whose single-track Hudson
Akron line the crash occurred. Mr..
Murtough, seriously injured, was un-
able to tell his story.
Had Orders to Meet at Siding.
Mr.. Wolcott, watching crews clear
away the wreckage, declared:
"The crew of the Doodlebug (the
gasoline COACH and the crews Of the
freight train had orders to meet
at Silver Lake, l mile north of the
scene, and wait for the freight to
pass. Murtough should have taken
his train onto the siding there. For
some reason he did not 60 onto the
siding"
j. F. Allenspaugh, Akron yard
master, said his investigation also
showed the 'Doodlebug's" crew was
at fault.
After a preliminary investigation,
E. w. Smith, vice president of the
railroad, expressed a similar view
and said the coach's crew also dis
regarded rigid" rule in failing to
obtain permission from the block
operator at Hudson before contin-
uing on the main track.
In a statement at Pittsburgh he
added:
with Engineman Murtough and
Conductor Harry Shaffer of the
motor car badly injured in Akron
hospitals, and with Baggagemaster
(Charles) Bilderback dead, it is i'm
possible to determine now why these
orders were disobeyed."
Passengers Didn't Have a Chance" !"
The freight train, northbound
from Columbus, telescoped the fore
end of the Akron bound 122,000-
pound coach, and showed it back in
its wake for 200 yards. Flames
spurted from the windows as its $50
gallon gasoline tanks exploded.
Firemen poured water into the
coach. Then they and volunteers
went about the sickening two-hour
task of removing bodies, many so
burned that identification was diff
ficult.
Coroner R. E. Amos, seeking to
clear up the identifications, said
the passengers didn't have chance
In the world" to escape.
Eyewitnesses related that flames
enveloped the coach so fast that
none of the passengers could escape.
One man, standing nearby, said he
heard no screams.
Officials estimated eight of the
dead were railroad employees dead
heading" home after concluding
their runs. Most of the passenger
victims were residents of the Akron
district. although the coach, which
shuttled the IL miles from Hudson
to Akron, had picked up passen-
gers at Hudson from the Pennsyl-
vania's Cleveland-P Pittsburgh line.
Engineer Tells Of Crash.
Two enginemen on the freight
train, which had two locomotives,
were burned slightly as they fled
the flames after braking to a stop.
Engineer o. M. Lodge of Colum-
bus, on the lead locomotive, said:
1--WE just came around the bend
IN the road when I saw the gas
electric loom up in front of us. We
jammed on the brakes and there
was a terrific explosion. B. E. Rem
olds, my fireman, stayed with her
through the fire and explosion I'M
til she came to stop. Then we
jumped through a wall of flame that
had surrounded the whole wreckage
when the crash came burning
gasoline was thrown up into my
cab. 1t burned my face"
The "deadheading" trainman who
survived. Tod Wonn, "a, who had
leg and arm injuries, said:
II was riding home in the bag
gage compartment when the con-
ductor came running back and
yelled:
1--WE are going to crash!'"
"The conductor leaped and I fol-
lowed him.
MY clothing caught fire.
II rolled in some bushes at the
side of the track and put out the
flames"
Terrible Scene"
Charles Taylor, who lives two
blocks from the scene, said the
wreck twas the most terrible scene
/ have ever witnessed.
II was ready to sit down to din
ner a little after 6 when I heard
what I thought was an explosion
followed by a rumbling noise. A
few minutes later I heard ambu-
lance sirens and I raced to the
scene.
The first thing I saw was fire.
men playing water on a Pennsyl-
vania coach which was half wrapped
around the front of double header
freight train. The coach was burn
ing furiously, with flames licking
around the top.
1.-THE flremen played water on the
wreckage for three quarters of an
hour before they could get to the
bodies.
Il could see inside the coach.
Seats and bodies were scattered
around. Bodies were wedged in the
windows and We could see legs and
arms hanging outside.
Ploughed Half Through Coach.
arm. fro;x