Engineer B.T. Egerton of Lake Toxaway and fireman Branch Tinsley of Brevard were painfully injured Wednesday afternoon in an accident on No. 7, the passenger train due here from Hendersonville at 5:50, at Pisgah Forest.
The injured men were rushed to Brevard in automobiles where surgical attention was rendered by Dr. T.J. Summey, the railway surgeon, assisted by Dr. Hunt. Mr. Egerton’s injuries, while not of a serious nature yet very painful, consisted of a badly bruised and scalded right leg; right hand and right side of face scratched and bruised. Mr. Tinsley had a frightful cut on the forehead which required many stitches. In addition to minor bruises he also suffered fracture of the ribs. After medical attention mr. Tinsley was removed to his home and Mr. Egerton taken to Mrs. T.J. Neeley’s.
The accident happened just north of the Station at Pisgah Forest and was caused by the engine of the passenger train striking a box car on the side track which had been pushed out too far to clear the main line. The train crew of the Carr Lumber Company had used this truck about 40 minutes before the accident and it is assumed that they unintentionally pushed this car out on the main line. The engine was badly damaged, (the) cab torn completely off and right side of the engine stripped of all machinery.
The broken steam pipes and escaping hot water and steam scalded Mr. Egerton’s right leg and made rescue very difficult. How he escaped instant death is a mystery to those who viewed the wreck afterwards. Mr. Egerton, in an interview to a News correspondent, states that when he first discovered the car on the main line, that he applied the brakes and hollered to fireman Tinsley to jump, then the terrific crash came; that he does not know just how he escaped. Mr. Tinsley said he heard Mr. Egerton tell him to jump but that the crash came about the same time, that in the tumult that followed he could not tell what hit him. None of the other members of the train crew or passengers were injured. Superintendent Hodges was promptly on the scene and the wreck was cleared in about an hour. A relief engine dispatched from Brevard and the train proceeded on to its destination.
At the time of going to press both the injured men were out of danger and resting easily.
From the front page of The Brevard News, Oct. 21, 1921
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