The heavy traffic and the Eastern's management's conservative style of not using the telegraph to dispatch trains, led to long delays along the line.

It had written instructions to wait to connect with an extra (special train) coming from the Ashbury Grove revival meeting.

While this was happening, the Portland Express arrived at Everett Junction and was stopped behind the second Saugus branch train.

At this point, there was considerable confusion on the part of the conductor of the Beverly accommodation and the engineer of the Portland Express as to the location and identity of each other's train.

The conductor was under the impression that the train behind him in the queue at Everett Junction was the Portland Express, and hence believed that the engineer would be well aware that the Beverly accommodation was running immediately in advance of him.

Approaching Revere, the attention of the engineer of the express was focused upwards, on a signal that would inform him whether the switches were set for the East Boston branch, not along the track.

The express had slowed to 10 miles per hour (16 km/h) on impact, but even this low speed was sufficient to cause significant damage to the Beverly accommodation.

Bystanders from the station and surviving passengers attempted to rescue trapped victims by tearing parts of the roof off the coaches, but their effort was unsuccessful as fire quickly engulfed the shattered timbers.

[13] The railroad was condemned by the public for their conservative management, old fashioned equipment, not having the Westinghouse air brakes on their locomotives and their insistence on using the old time-interval system and not using the telegraph.