A VICTORIAN RAILWAY SMASH.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2463, 9 February 1881, Page 3

A VICTORIAN RAILWAY SMASH.

A most disastrous railway accident occurred on Wednesday Jan. 26, near Beaufort railway station, on the line between Ballarat and Ararat, resulting in serious injuries to seven of the passengers. The 10.45 a.m. train from Stawell was stopping at Beaufort to take in passengers and water, the special goods train, which was following it, was seen or heard to be coming at great velocity, and it became apparent to the driver of the passenger train that he must move on to avoid a collision.

It is said by a passenger that in this dilemma he had to meet another train advancing from the opposite direction, and that this caused him some hesitation. However, he did get up full steam and started his train but the approaching goods train, consisting of an engine and five heavily laden trucks, came on at a apeed of 25 miles an hour, and crashed on the van of the other,forcing it upon the carriages, smashing some of the latter, and inflicting severe injuries on several of the passengers. Of these, Mrs Spencer of Ararat, an elderly lady, had her left hand and part of her arm torn away from below the elbow, besides being much bruised aboutf the head. With her was a daughter by a prior marriage (Miss Timmins), who is a good deal injured. Mrs Mazina and her two sons were all injured, one of the sons, Charles Mazina a boy of about seven years of age, being very dangerously hurt. Her little girl was almost miraculously saved by a German named Rohde, who was in the carriage. She was standing at the time of the collision between the seats. Mr Kohde hearing the crash lifted and held her up, and the next moment the edges of the seats crushed together. But for Mr Rohde's timely assistances she must have been killed on the instant. A Miss Wallace was also injured, but not severely. The engine and van of the passenger train were then got ready, and the sufferers were removed to the Ballarat Hospital, where it was found necessary to amputate Mrs Spencer’s arm. She now lies in a very precarious! state, as also does the younger boy Mazina. Mr Bates, a commercial traveller, says that the carriage he was in was completely smashed, and he does not know how he escaped with his life, as he was pitched from one end of the carriage to the other. He is a good deal hurt, but not sufficiently to prevent him going on to Melbourne. The cause of the accident is thus stated :—Newman, the driver of the special goods train, had more to draw up-hill than his engine could manage, and on rising the hill before he came to Beaufort, he detached the hinder half of his train, with the brake, and went on with the front half. On descending the hill to Beaufort the brake on the five heavily-laden trucks was not effective enough to check the velocity of the train; hence the collision. Newman, the driver of the engine at the time of the collision, was not the man that should have driven. Some reticence is observable, but it is said that an ordinary porter was in the guard’s place, and probably did not know the use of the truck brake. There was only one passenger carriage on the rain. t ========