Train № 33 the Owl going 90 miles (140 km) per hour sped through an open switch at Winslow Junction.
[2] The derailment of train № 33 resulted in most of the six-car Atlantic City express plunging down an embankment into the WJ&S's southbound Cape May branch connecting track.
[3] The Interstate Commerce Commission investigation found that the route could have been changed after the train had passed the distant signal at the plant was not interlocked, but there was no evidence that this had been done.
The report further stated that the engineer failed to acknowledge the junction by blowing the whistle and attempt to stop the train.
[2] "This accident was caused by failure of Engineman Wescott of train № 33 to be governed by automatic and interlocking signal indications, which resulted in train № 33 taking the diverging route at a high rate of speed and being derailed due to the outer rail of the curve giving way.