The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1859-03-24
Explosion I'm n Coal Mine-TwO
Men SuFOcated TO Death.

Explosion I'm a COaI Mine-TwO
Men SuTOcated to Death.
An accident occurred at Tod's Coal Shaft
Brier Hill, on Wednesday afternoon, the GIL
inst, which resulted in the death OF John
Woolly and Edward Davis, two worthy citi
zens. We visited the premises since, anC
learned from JOHN Stambaugh, who was
present at the time of the accident, the fol,
lowing particulars:
About one year since, the roof OF portion
of the old bank caved in, filling the water
courses, and preventing it's escape, which
Immediately flooded large portion OF the
bank, and stopped the work. To get rid oi
! the water, and ventilute the bank, the shaft
was sunk, which is 2l5 feet deep, and is di.
vided by partition. On one side of this Is
the passage for the tub, and on the other The
pump, with platform every ten feet, con-
nected by ladders. The shsft was not sunk
directly over a room, but in close proximity
to one. Into this q hole was bored from the
bottom OF the shaft, through which the water
raised in the sha # to the height of fifteen
feet. They had been pumping five weeks.
On Wednesday morning the water was 30
low that they could pump no more. Mr..
Richard Woolly thought that perhaps the
hole was stopped up, or needed enlarging,
and with his son and Mr.. Davis, went down
10 make the water.pussage larger, (Which
had been done several times beiore,) but
found that the water in the bank was on q
level with that in the shaft, and as the bank
was relieved of the water, all that it needed
to be able to work again, was thorough
ventilation. He, however, was compelled
to attend Court at Warren that day, and told
his son and Davis to take safety lamp, en-
ter through the old slope, and explore the
bank, and if they discovered either "black-
damp" (carbonic acid gns,) or "fre-damp,"
[carburted hydrogen gas,) not to attempt to
open an air passage into the shaft
After they had left, they, with e third per.
son, went into the shaft, and cut away the
partition between the shaft and the room,
where they intended to make the opening,
leaving it perhaps not more than four or five
inches thick. Woolly and Davis then en-
tered the bank through the slope az directed,
but were compelled to retreat by the gases
above mentioned. Strange, however, as it
may appear, they returned to the shaft, en-.
tered it, Git is believed with both an open and
safety lamp; for they must have had an open
lamp, otherwise the gas could not have been
inAamed, and would not have exploded;
safety lamp was found in the bottom of the
sha(t,) and proceeded to make the communi.
cation.
After being down about twenty or thirty
minutes, they called to the engineer to raise
them up. He stepped to the engine, and
the drum had made something over one revo-
luton, which would raise the tub about fif-
teen feet feet, and could not have consumed
more than thirty seconds, when he wus start
led by terrific explosion, and the tub came
up empty He heard them Gull alter the
explosion, and lowered the tub several times,
but in vain. He is satisfied from the work.
at the time of the explosion. If so, they
were most probably blown out.
The explosion occurred about O'clock
From that time until O'Clock, the shaft was
filed with an ascending current of carbonic
acid gas, in which no human being could
have lived for moment. After the gas had
ceased to rise through the shalt, parties en-,
Tered and found the bodies. That of Wool.
y was discovered on the second platform
rom the bottom, while that OF Davis was on
he fourth. WooIly was lying on his back,
With his hands over his face, without any
marks or bruises worthy o. notice. Davis,
however, was found with his arm nearly
eVered from his body, whether by the c}n.
ussion Of the pump rod, is mere conjecture.
t would seem that, after being blown out OF
he tub, they had attempted to escape by the
odders on the opposite side, but on the wsy
we're ovcrpowered, and soon "slept the sleep
hat knows no waking"
Davis was atout thirty-three years Of age,
nd leaves wife and five small children
ToolIeY was thirty, and unmarried. They
'ere both members OF Hebron lodge, |. D.
}. F., Of Youngstown. The brother mem.
ers of the order, and q large concourse OF
itizens. attended the funeral, which took
lace on Friday at - O'Clock. Professions
ere formed at the respective residences of
he deceased, md met ut the office of Hon
>aVij Tod. From thence the ossembIags
rocoeded to the WeIch Baptist Church,
!here the funeral sermon wus preached BY
1r. Steans. The bodies were then depos-
ted in the graveyard connected with the
hurCh.
The following in relation to the gases pc
uliar to coal mines, may not prove uninter.
sting in this connection: "Csrbuted hydro
en- gas Chat which exploded in this in
tonce) is one half as heavy as common air,
nd not poisonous when respired. 1t is
ormed abundantly in the mud of stugnant
ools, cohtaing decomposing organic matter.
is often disengaged in large quantities in
oal mines, and, with common air, consti.
ties the fatal FIRE-DAMP. If the air is more
ian six, or less than fourteen times the vol
me Of the gas, the mixture explodes violent.
Y when it is iDflamed. Casbonic ucid gas,
that in which the flame of a candle is i'm
lediately extinguished) is produced by the
ombustion; SO that those who are not killed
y the burning or shock, are suffocated by
he pas. - YnMnn SLofrr ReniSipr -.