I. C. Freight Train Plunges Into Boeuf River Near Girard

Workman Left Switch Open; Fireman and Brakeman Only Slightly Injured In One of Most Costly Wrecks In History of Railroad

The Richland Beacon-News, Rayville, Louisiana, 20 Jul 1940, Sat  •  Page 1

One of the most costly wrecks in the history of the Illinois Central Railroad occurred at Boeuf River. two and one-half miles west of Rayville, when train No. 273 ran into an’ open switch and the engine and several cars plunged into the river or were piled up on a short spur track, on last Tuesday morning at 9:30 o’clock.

One of the most costly wrecks in the history of the Illinois Central Railroad occurred at Boeuf River. two and one-half miles west of Rayville, when train No. 273 ran into an’ open switch and the engine and several cars plunged into the river or were piled up on a short spur track, on last Tuesday morning at 9:30 o’clock.

While a great deal of property damage resulted from the accident, fortunately there were no deaths, although the engineer, fireman and a brakeman went into Boeuf river in the cab of the engine and remained with the locomotive until it turned over in the middle of the swollen stream. The location of the wreck is at the bridge of the Illinois Central railroad. which parallels the Dixie Overland highway at this point between Rayville and Girard.

The engineer, A. A. (Gus) Cornett, who resides in Monroe, came out of the wreck uninjured. The fireman, R E. (Bob) Lloyd, and the brakeman Horace Leslie, both of Shreveport were slightly injured. It is a miracle that all three of these men escaped death, as they remained with the engine until it stopped and turned over in the middle of Boeuf river, which is swollen by the recent continued rains. The engine also pushed a car of sand and the pump house into the river ahead of it. The nose of the engine was submerged and the cab on the fireman’s side was also under water, but the engineer’s seat in the cab did not go under.

The cause of the accident is supposed to be the result of carelessness in some workman leaving the switch to the spur track at this point open. This switch track runs from the main line on the south side and stops at the edge of the bank of the river. Nine of the seventeen cars of the train were derailed, and the loads in several cars dumped on the bank of the river in a scrambled pile.

Included in the damaged freight was a flat car load of Farmall tractors, several cars of pine pulp wood and a car of nitrate of soda. While the switch track was completely demolished, the damage to the main line was comparatively slight, about 75 feet being torn up by one of the box cars leaving the switch and tearing up the ties and bending the rails for a distance.

The main line was repaired and traffic resumed within four hours. The work of re moving the cars will require some time, and that of recovering the locomotive from the waters of Boeuf river appears to be a big task. It is understood that an extra large wrecker has been ordered from Paducah, Ky.

The train was traveling at the rate of about 40 miles per hour, and the engineer evidently saw the open switch in time to slow his train down to approximately 20 miles per hour, otherwise the damage would have been greater.

The freight was en route from Vicksburg to Shreveport, and when it passed Rayville a number of citizens saw several hoboes riding on one of the cars that wrecked, but no bodies have been found, and it is supposed they may have left this particular car for another after leaving Rayville.