THE TERRIBLE ACCIDENT IN SUNDERLAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XX, Issue 6763, 21 July 1883, Page 5

THE TERRIBLE ACCIDENT IN SUNDERLAND.

At an entertainment given in Sunderland, County of Durham, on June IC, a calamity occurred involving the death of over two hundred children. The entertainment, it appears, was a performance in conjuring, given at Victoria Hall, at which several thousand children were present and but few adults. The accident occurred at the close of the feats, the body of the hall being entirely cb ared of the occupants, when some 120 of the little ones came rushing down the Btairs from the gallery. At the top of the first flight of stairs was a door which opened only 20 incbe", and thuß but one child at a time could get through. At this point, while the mass of children was pushing forward, one of them fell and was unable to rise, owing to the others crowding. The result was that a number was pushed down, trampled, and suffocated. The scene was terrific. No effort could stop the mad rush of the affrighted children. They came on pell-mell though, strangely, without much shouting, and soon over 200 were knocked down and suffocated to death by others trampling upon them. The greater number of bodies, which were badly mangled from trampling, laid seven or eight deep. Many of the victims not killed had the clothing torn from their bodies, and this, together with the bleeding wounds of the unfortunate, showed the terrible nature of the struggle. The ages of the killed ranged from four to fourteen years. The excitement in the town was terrible. A crowd of 20,000 people surrounded tho hall, and the authorities ordered out the 68th Regiment to preserve order. The bodieß were laid out in the hall, and the parents of those killed were admitted to identify their lost children. Heartrending scenes occurred while identification was in progress. Mothers of the dead_ children constantly uttered piercing shrieks, and many fainted on discovering the bodies of their little ones. The ticket-taker throws the blame for the calamity upon tho man connected with the entertainment, who, it appears, fastened the door half open, in order that prizes might be given the children one at a time while leaving the hall. The funerals of a great many of the victims took place on the 19th. The streets were crowded with sympathetic people, most of whom were in mourning. One hundred free graves were provided in one cemetery for the reception of the victims, exclusive of those for whioh parents of lost little ones will pay. Subscriptions were liberal. The Empress of Germany wrote to the Queen expressing deep sympathy with the sufferers by this terrible disaster. ___^_^______