A Near-Fatal Industrial Accident Near Everett
A laborer survives after being crushed by railroad cars during a logging operation.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
John J. Woods, a laborer employed at Keefe & Murphy's mill near Everett, narrowly escaped losing both legs in a railroad accident on a Great Northern switch about 7:00 o'clock yesterday morning. He was standing on an empty flat-bottomed car preparing to load logs when another car was thrown into the switch. It bumped the car upon which Woods stood, throwing him off and between the cars. Two wheels passed over him, but, strange to say, neither leg was broken. The flesh of the left thigh was badly cut by the flange of the wheel and the calf of the right leg was mashed, yet no bones were broken. Woods kept his wits about him, and after the two wheels had passed, dragged himself away from the track. He was taken to Everett, where Dr. Harris attended him previous to his removal to Providence Hospital in this city.
“Two wheels passed over him, but, strange to say, neither leg was broken.”
Railroad and mill work were among the most dangerous jobs in early Pacific Northwest industry, with safety standards almost nonexistent. Today's industrial safety regulations and workers' compensation laws were born directly from the frequency of such 'routine' accidents.
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