The Massachusetts spy, and Worcester County advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1825-1831, 1827-08-29

mechanic IN the first floor over the boilers,
and eighteen reelers, (all females) who
worked also exactly over the boilers in the
fifth and highest stony from the ground,
where a small temporary floor had been
laid for them.
The factory commenced work at the
usual hour (half past five o'clock) yesterday
morning, and nothing was observed to be
wrong until six O'clock, when tremendous
explosion took place, which shook the whole
of the buildings, and filed the people at
work in the old factory with the utmost
terror and alarm. From the clouds OF dust
which filled the air, it was some time be-
fore the exact nature of the catastrophe
could be ascertained, though the agoniz-
ing shrieks of several persons proclaimed
it to be of the most dreadful nature. AS
soon as the dust subsidized, it was discover
ed that the boiler nearest the end of the
old factory numbered b had exploded, and
entirely demolished six bays of that end of
the new factory, where the boiler house
was situate, hardly one brick being left up
on another. Of course, the first attention
of those who fastened to the spot, was call
ed to the unfortunate persons who, prior TO
the explosion, were at work in that part OF
the building. OF the eighteen reelers,
seventeen were at their employment, and
they were, of course, precipitated to the
ground, amongst the ruins of the wall and
roof of the building. Seven of them were
either taken up dead, or expired in few
minutes afterwards-siX were SO dreadful
ly injured as to cause great doubts of their
recovery-but the remaining four, eXtraor-
binary as it may seem, when we consider
the height from which they had been pre-
cipitated, were comparatively little injured,
and we believe two of them were able to
walk home without assistance.
Of the other persons usually employed III
the new factory, the machinlst happened
not to be at his work at the moment of the
explosion, and he, therefore, escaped. The
engineer happened, at the moment, to be
within the boiler house, on the landing of
a flight of steps leading into the engine
house of the old factory, and quite close to
the door. There he was found immediate
ly after the explosion, dreadfully mangled,
and quite dead. From the position in
which he lay, it appeared very probable
that, at the moment when the boiler burst,
he was examining the safety valve of the
engine having, probably, from some unu-
sual appearance in the boiler house, sus-
pected that something was amiss.
On further examination, the real cause
of this dreadful accident was very satisfac-
torily developed.
1t appears that the steam, arising from
the three boilers, was emitted las is usual
when two or more boilers are used for the
same enginel into large pipe running
across the boiler house to the engine in
the old factory; and as it was customary
to use only two Of these boilers at the same
time, each had valve to shut it off from
communicating with the pipe when it was
not in use. The boiler, which exploded,
had in this way been out of use for about a
fortnight, and had only been set to work
again on the day before the accident. In
the morning the engineer, most probably
forgetting that that boiler was then in use,
had leyteCLIU % UPCI1 Ftc VutUe COWWuHtCut-
ing icith Me pipe, though he had made a
fire under the boiler. There was, there
fore, no vent whatever for the steam which
was generated; and, Of course, when it
acquired sufficient pressure, it exploded
with terrific violence, and produced the
lamentable consequences which we have
described.