An accident occurred on the four-track mainline of the New York Central Railroad at 10:02 P.M. on March 27, 1953, 2.4 miles (3.9 km) east of Conneaut, Ohio.
It began when an improperly secured load of pipe broke loose from a gondola car on an eastbound freight train, damaging the westbound passenger track.
The accident occurred on the mainline[1] of the Erie Division at a point 2.4 miles (3.9 km) east of Conneaut and 1,861 feet (567 m) from the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line.
Only a muddy dirt lane led from the crash site to a major road 2 miles (3.2 km) south, and it soon became blocked by vehicles mired in the mud.
The injured were either carried on stretchers or moved by hand car to the nearest road.
Because the load was not properly secured, nine sections of pipe fell from the car while in transit.
As the train proceeded at a speed of 36 miles per hour (58 km/h), the resultant thrust transmitted by the pipe to track No.