OFF THE LINE.

Northern Advocate, 22 August 1924, Page 5

OFF THE LINE.

TEAMCAE CBASH

TWO FATALITIES. TWENTY OTHERS INJURED. (Received 9 a.m.) SYDNEY, This Day. Shortly before 7 o'clock yesterday morning a double tram ear ran off the line, dropped, over an embankment, fell several feet and crashed into an outhouse. Both parts of the car were smashed. Two men were killed and 20 other persons injured.—A. and N.Z.

FIFTY MILES AN HOUR. NINETY PASSENGERS ABOARD. DRIVER'S PLUCKY EFFORTS. (Received 0.10 a.m.) SYDNEY, This Day. In the tram smash the second man killed was Lambert, :i labourer. The car had about DO passengers aboard. Tlu- driver made frantic efforts to obtain control of the oar right up to the time of the crash, the tram travelling at the rate of 50 miles an hour. The tram jumped the rails 100 yards from the loop, travelled on the concrete roadway and tore across both sets of rails. The lending car torpedoed through a 21-feet retaining wall, across a 12-foot road and crashed into a brick outhouse, which was shattered.

Constable Leeds, who was on the front of the rear car, fell beneath the front car when it telescoped the one behind and was crushed to death: The conductor, named Cowan, was on the front of the first car and was seriously injured. He was saved from instant death only by the wall of the outhouse giving way so easily. Both victims had to be cut out of the wreckage with axes. AH the passengers who were not seriously injured were severely shaken. Ambulances were quickly on the scene and 10 seriously injured people were sent to hospital. A heavy mist was one of the contributing causes of the disaster. The rails were greasy, preventing the wheels gripping. The driver courageously stuck to his post, trying eiffey available means to stop the runaway till the moment of the crash. The injured list now amounts to 27. Two or three have broken limbs, the others mostly, suffering from bruises and severe shock. Numbers suffering from slighter shock quickly recovered. Amongst the latter some took the risk of jumping off the tram when they saw that a crash was inevitable.

Prior to the accident there had been a stoppage on the line and the drivers were making up time. They passed some of the usual calling places without stopping. But for this there would have been considerably more passengers aboard. —A. and N.Z.