Details of Railway Accidents in the Ottawa Area

1951, March 2 - Crossing Accident at Maxville, CNR Alexandria subdivision, one fatality

From the Ottawa Citizen 2 March 1951 Maxville Man Killed By Train Special To The Citizen MAXVILLE One man was killed and his father miraculously escaped serious injury when the CNR No. 2 flyer from Vancouver smashed into a milk truck at a level crossing here at 9.1S this morning. Dead is John Cuillerier, 22, a resident of Maxville, who was driving the truck. Injured but able to walk away from the wreckage was his father, Arthur Cuillerier, 68, a retired farmer now living at the west end of the village. The train, according to railway officials, was travelling at its average running speed although it was running two hours late. It does not stop at Maxville and residents of Maxville estimated it was travelling at between 50 and 60 miles per hour when it went through the crossing in the center of this Glengarry County village. The engineer was Robert J. Eno, 109 Glenora Avenue, Ottawa. Warnings Were Working Railway officials reported that both wig-wag and bell signals were working at the crossing and there is no explanation why the driver of the truck did not see or hear the warning as the weather was clear at the time, although it had been snowing previously. The train after a brief delay continued to Montreal. Mrs. Napoleon Richer told The Evening Citizen she understood her brother and father were travelling south up a slight incline to the crossing and that the road was quite slippery after the recent snow. The train roared down upon the crossing and struck the rear of the truck with a crash that could be heard throughout the village. The vehicle was broken in two. The cab was slammed against the concrete base of the crossing standards, only 15 feet from the point of impact. The rear end waa hurled into the air and travelled 100 feet down the right-of-way. Aroused by the sound of the crash, neighbors in nearby houses rushed to the scene and pulled the father, dased and bleeding from cuts about the face from the twisted metal. The impact thew his son through the atr and he landed In a fresh snowbank 100 feet down the track, close to the remains of the rear end of the truck. Father Able To Walk Mr. Cuillerier a little later walked up to the home of Jacques Legault while his son waa carried there and died shortly afterwards Dr. Don Mutch was summoned and. after preliminary treatment, removed both men to his own office. Dr Howard Munro was also on hand to assist. Mrs Richer explained that her father and brother were out to pick up milk to be delivered to the Borden Company plant next to the Cuillierer home The truck was owned by her eldest brother. Ernest Cuillierer of Maxville.

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Updated 22 September 2014