Details of Railway Accidents in the Ottawa Area

1938 April 26 - Eastbound CNR Transcontinental hits an abandoned hand car at Bells Corners

Ottawa Journal Saturday 30 April 1938 Train Hits Wrecked Handcar Youth Is Charged Transcontinental Stays on Rails but Track Torn Up. Passengers aboard the fast east-bound Canadian National Railways transcontinental express No. 2, had a close call, and considerable property damage was caused, when the flyer crashed into wreckage of a handcar on the main line east of Bell's Comers, early on the morning of Tuesday, it was revealed here late Friday night by railway authorities with the arrest of a youth they charge was responsible for the near-derailment. Travelling towards Ottawa through dense fog, at 5.30 a.m. on Tuesday, the Vancouver train threw the obstruction a considerable distance, causing the track to be torn up for nearly 200 yards. and doing damage to the locomotive. Fortunately the train did not leave the tracks. Kenneth Edingsborough, 22, farm hand employed four miles east of Bell's Corners, was arrested at 10.15 p.m.. on Friday by Chief Investigator B.B. Harris, of C.N.R. police, Ottawa, and booked at Ottawa police station later. He is appearing In Carleton County court next week on a charge of placing an obstruction on the railway in such a way as to cause. damage to property and possible loss of life. He will also be charged with breaking into a railway section carhouse. and stealing a motor-propelled handcar, which was destroyed. Edingsborough is alleged to have told police he had attended a dance at Bells Corners on the night of Monday, and about two o'clock in the morning started to walk eastward along the tracks towards his employer's farm. It is alleged that Edingsborough knew  where the motor-propelled hand-car, which is valued at $500, and contains, in addition, valuable tools and equipment was stored. Railway police charge the farm hand broke into the storehouse and pushed the handcar on to the tracks. It was urged along the rails, in an easterly direction, for some distance.  About one mile east of the shack, police say, an attempt was made to start it with match or some other light. Flames caught around the carburetor, and in a few miles the handcar was blazing. The vehicle was damaged beyond repair. Investigator  Harris stated, after the fire the handcar had been left on the tracks. It was. too heavy to remove again. The young farm worker is a native ofLondon, England. He came to Canada about elght years ago. Ottawa Journal Monday 2 May 1938 Admits Handcar Theft And Is Remanded Kenneth Edinsborough, 22, of City View, pleaded guilty in County Magistrates Court this morning on two charges arising out of a near-derailment of the C.N.R. Transcontinental Express at Bells Corners last Tuesday. Edinsborough admitted stealing the handcar from the roundhouse (sic) and with placing an obstruction across the tracks in such a way as to endanger the lives of the people in the flyer. He was remanded until next Monday by Magistrate Clayton.

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Updated 14 July 2018