THE BOSTON SUJSDAi G-LOBE— JULY 31, imp. 



PASSENGERS IN 



TUNNEL WRECK 







Kept in Intense Heat, Smoke 

 And Gas 2 14 flours. 



ear of Collision in Hoosac Bore 

 Adds to the Panic. 



NORTH ADAMS, July 30-Sufferlng 

 (rem intense heat, with breathing made 

 llfficult by smoke and gas, 200 pas- 

 sengers were confined in Hoosac tunnel 

 [or two and a quarter hours today 

 >£ter the eastbound train due to pass 

 through this city at 11.27 a m, over the 

 (•rtchburg division of the B & M, left 

 Jhe rails about 300 £eet east of the" cen- 

 tral shaft of the tunnel, blocking both 

 sracks. 



Women and children were thrown 

 jnto a panic and all the passengers re- 

 ceived a severe jolting when the acci- 

 dent occurred. The train was running 

 pearly 30 miles an hour when the acci- 

 dent occurred, but not a person was 

 hurt. To add to the confusion was the 

 fear that another train, due from the 

 opposite direction, should crash into 

 the cars, which leaned toward the 

 westbound track. 



It was after 5pm before the west- 

 bound track was cleared, and it was 

 [:06 p m when the express for Boston 

 lue to leave here at 2:27 entered the big 

 bore with its own passeu-i'ers and those 

 Sf the wrecked train, using the west- 

 bound track after three passenger trains 

 which toad been waiting at the east end 

 of the tunnel had passed through. 



The 11:27 train for Boston, made up 

 of an express oar, baggage car, two 

 Pullmans, a smoker and coach, was 

 about 10 minutes late, and entered the 

 tunnel at 11:39. It had passed the big 

 ventilating shaft midway of the tun- 

 nel, and was beginning to gather speed 

 down the incline, when the tender of 

 the locomotive left the rails, followed 

 by all the cars, the locomotive alone 



remaining in its place. The train ran 

 several car lengths over the ties before 

 it came to a halt, and only the hard- 

 ness of the roadbed, which kept the 

 car wheels from plowing into it very 

 deeply, prevented a much worse acci- 

 dent. 



The cars tilted over to the left to- 

 ward the westbound track, throwing 

 passengers toward the side of the car, 

 and the wheels striking the ties gave 

 those on 

 jolting. 



There v 

 or three i 



board the train 

 l cho: 



is, two 



i fainted and others be- 

 came hysterical. 



Some of the trainmen ran to a, near- 

 by telephone to notify the n**^"-»orid 

 of the accident. The telephone frfs- 

 tem, however, had been crippled bar a 

 thunder storm during the morning, 

 and the trainmen could not make 

 themselves understood. 



Meantime other trainmen had been 

 going through the cars to see if anyone 

 was injured and reassure the paten- 

 ters. They attempted to persuade them I 

 to rem ain in the cars and keep win- 



dows and doors closed to exclude the 



smoke. 



Word spread, however, that another 

 train which generally meets the east- 

 bound in the tunnel was due, and there 

 was a rush to the doors by passengers 

 who feared that the other train would 

 come tearing thrtmgh the darkness and 

 crash into the cars tilted toward the 

 westbound track. The trainmen were 

 forced to give way. 



The west-bound train, however, was 

 late and, although the officials at North 

 Adams were unable to distinguish much 

 of what the trainmen at the telephone 

 were saying, they knew that there had 

 been an accident in the tunnel and the 

 other train was caught and held at the 

 eastern portal. 



The passengers who left the wrecked 

 train quickly found conditions worse 

 outside the cars than inside. Attempt- 

 ing to grope their way through the in- 

 tense blackness in the damp hole, and 

 stumbling over rails and against the 

 sides of the tunnel, they only realized 

 the more their helplessness, buried in 

 the heart of the mountain. Assured by 

 the trainmen that precaution had been 

 taken to make further accident impos- 

 sible, they were glad to return to the 



After the excitement subsided the 

 long wait for rescue began. It was hot- 

 stifling hot. The rain of the morning 

 had made ventilation better, but the 

 smoke and coal gas made breathing 

 mill cult. Women and children lay across 

 seats almost helpless, while men per- 

 spired and fumed. 



When it was learned that there had 

 been an accident in the tunnel the of- 

 ficials outside sent a locomotive and 

 crew in slowly to_ investigate. The 

 wreck was found and it was discovered 

 that one car had leaned so far over tile 

 westbound track as to make it impos- 

 sible for a locomotive to pass. 



When the conditions were reported 

 outside a locomotive and two cars were 

 sent in from North Adams and the pas- 

 sengers were brought out. Although 

 crowded in the relief train they were a 

 happy lot when brought to the outer 

 aic and light. 



Those on the wrecked train were 

 given dinner at the hot»l Richmond by 

 the T. & M. 



'Wrecking trains wer 

 tunnel, and the crews 

 distressing conditions i 

 bound track passable 

 work upon the other. 



When evervthing wa 

 haul, a huge oil bun 

 was sent into the «__. . 

 evening to pull the derailed < 

 on the track and out. 



The oil burner itself left the rails 

 under its heavy load and at 10 o'clock 

 a wrecking gang called from Me- 

 chanicsville, N Y, entered the tunnel 

 to dig out the oil burner. 



There is little chance of traffic being 

 restored tonight. 



2 sent into the 

 working under 

 nade the west- 

 jnd then began 



s ready for the 

 ling locoro " 

 mnel late 



> back 



