Feb 20. 1891 Santa Fe New Mexican
Railway wreck A close call on the Santa Fe Southern.
The soft weather and continuous rain having undermined the approach of the narrow gauge bridge over the Rio Grande, the north bound train yesterday had a very narrow escape. Engineer Blanchard felt the bridge give as his engine approached it, and he pulled the throttle wide open, hoping to bound over the structure before the crash came. This move prevented any loss of life. The engine broke away from the tender and sped across to terra firma; the tender and baggage car went through the bridge into the river, but strange to say the passenger coach stopped stock still before it reach the break, the engineer having thoughtfully put on the air brakes when he saw what was coming. Mail Agent Scheurich was in the mail car at the time it went down, and after rattling around in his apartment for a few seconds he was literally dumped out of the end door and fell into the water. He was uninjured and swam out. The mail was rescued and the passenger and mail transferred to Espanola by means of a D&RG train. A force of men is at work repairing the break and trying to raise the mail car and tender from their muddy bed.
There is also some delay on the main line of the D&RG, no trains having come south of Alamosa yesterday, hence no Denver mail.
Feb 24, 1891 Forecast Flood
…Snow on the D&RG track over Cumbres mountain is 15 feet in depth. All trains on the Durango line of the narrow gauge are tied up and it has been snowing almost constantly for the past ten days.
Feb 26, 1891 NNM
On the D&RG the Conejos range division is completely snowed under, no mail having gone west to Durango or Silverton for ten days. Chama also is cut off. The D&RG has again had to admit the usefulness of its New Mexico branch as far as Espanola, and all mail for Chama and the southwestern Colorado is now brought down to Espanola and sent by team from that point up to Chama valley, via Ojo Caliente, Tierra Amarilla and Chama, a thirty days’ contract to this end having been let to W. E. Broad.
March 2, 1891 NNM QUITE A BLOCKADE ON THE D&RG RR
Editor W. S. Stevens, of the Northwest New Mexican published at Chama, writes from there under the date of Feb 23d last, that the D&RG railroad across the Conejos range and Cumbres pass has been blockaded by snow for a week, and that it may be two weeks yet before the road will be in shape for travel. He has received no copy of the New Mexican since the 13th instant, and is consequently somewhat at a loss to know what has happened in the other world.
In this connection it may be again said to the D&RG authorities. That it would be cheaper, better and more profitable all around where they to abandon the piece of track over and across the range and build up the Chama and across the Canon Largo to the San Juan River and thence up to Durango.
A special train chartered by F M Roberts, was yesterday run over the narrow gauge to Espanola. The excursionists spent the day in gunning on the Rio Grande and succeeded in bagging considerable game. [Names given.]
March 5, 1891 THE BLOCKADE RAISED. A TEN DAY’s TIE UP ON THE NARROW GAUGE CUT OPEN BY A ROTARY SNOW PLOW.
The narrow gauge road has suffered an extraordinary experience on its line between Embudo and Antonito for the past ten days. The snow, sleet and high wind combined to pack the track south of Tres Piedras for several miles of a mass of snow and sand from five to eight feet deep and frozen “as had as Kelsey’s flints,” as Supt. Helm puts it. Two miles above Tres Piedras it did likewise, and between the two snow banks tow passenger and mail trains were tied up early last week, and the passenger and crews have since been compelled to take a rest at Tres Piedras, not being able to move either way. In the mean time, Supt. Lydon had a force of men trying to clear the track, but the obstruction was frozen so hard that it had to be cut out in chunks and was a tedious job. A rotary snow plow was also brought into use and for a few days has been bucking away the drifts. By this means the road was finally opened last night, and a telegram from Supt. Lydon states that the D&RG train will come through to Santa on time this evening.
