Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Panhandle Railroad Tunnel Fire
June
4, 1901
Pittsburg, June 4. -- A mistake in signals and a broken drawhead caused a
sensational fire in Try street tunnel of the Panhandle railroad at midnight and
valuable property was destroyed and nine passengers had a race for life to get
off the train and tunnel. The yard freight had partly cleared the tunnel
within the Carnegie
 accommodation entered at the exit a drawhead broke on the
last car of the freight. A 300 barrel oil tank was in the rear of the
freight. Into this the accommodation's engine crashed without warning,
setting fire tot he oil. Flames shot up fifty feet, burning ties for a
hundred down on the track. Passenger coaches were instantly in flames from
the river of burning oil. The passengers, all of whom were men going to
work, and were crew ran for their lives out of the rear of the train and back
through the tunnel. One C. A. Breese, tower operator, a cripple who
uses crutches, was badly bruised, and is now in the hospital.
Accommodation crew claims to have had a white block on entering the tunnel.
They said they did not enter until the tunnel was reported from the other end.
The city firemen and railroaders after three hours hard work up out the
flames. The remains of the coaches and damaged engine are being removed
today.
The
Marion Daily Star, Marion, OH 4 Jun 1901
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