RAILWAY WRECK.

Poverty Bay Herald, 17 April 1906, Page 4

RAILWAY WRECK.

.JIEjgJJJ^LE HEAD-ON COLLISION. (Per s.s. SievraSk-kSSkfeSSf:) ~ SAN FRANCISCO, March 25. A despatch from Pueblo, Colorado, March 16, says : Two trains of the Denver and Rio Grande Railway had a headon collision, four iniles east of Florence this morning, with horrible .results. The trains met on a sharp curve, and were less than two hundred yards apart when the enginemen discovered a collision was imminent. The driver of the westbound train put forth every effort to bring the train to a standstill. He went to death with his hand on the throttle. This is shown by the fireman who jumped and Jived. The engine crew on the east-bound train all died at their posts. The disaster was made most horrible by the manner of death of many of the passengers, variously estimated at twenty to thirty-five. Fire swept over the wreck, engulfing it in the cauldron of flames, and leaving only charred and blackened bones to tell the story of the disaster. The accident occurred in a blinding storm at 2.30 a.m. The schedule of the trains was changed owing to the snow and wind, which made it necessary to exercise unusual care. A telegraph o'perator who should have given the changed order to the train crew admits he was asleep at his post, fl'he incidents of the disaster were infinitely pathetic. One passenger had legs broken and could not go to the assistance of his wife and baby, though he could hear them calling him from the sleepers' car, which was just bursting into flames, in which they were burned. The remains of victims were beyond identification, being i practically destroyed.