Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1876-03-30
.,e Coal Mine Explosion.

r. 2 a
i .,e;,e coal regions in the vicin-
me s;isrsbafre Paws recently the
~ q 4 very remark aole gas explosion.
scepss sy,,owing particulars are nom me
yeE ienlosion occurred in the mine
The e g ne Prospect shaft, and owned
gBcEn feligh Valley Coal Company.
BIZ TIE has been in operation about FIVE
The plnea l,as always had the reputation
rsars. -. more gas than any other mine
Of hinnbracite coal region. In conse-
ID the she he utmost precautions. have al
auenes I'm taken against an explosion
VAS - mine was in operation, by ap-
vbne the best means OF ventilation
pgihs I'm the night of the 18th of
knoNn last. the mine took fire from the
Jsnua,gg ~ 4 current of gas, just after a
ignl'paaJ heen made by a miner, and it
bss.e nd necessary to force water into
Fss Ne for three weeks, until it was
tbe ma ,nd that nearly 10, 900 900 gallons of
s.a, had been poured In.
sa naorations were lately commenced to
W Uni the water, and this was done by
sse ~ buckets holding 100 gallons
pssD which were fixed in the shaft and
sscn, and lowered alternately. 1t was
p,.alated that about $1,000 gallons were
"a in this way every twenty -four
~ The shaft has depth from the
Zoe of 600 feet. When the work of
Sng the mine was commenced, there
about 100 feet of water in the shaft
wing that the chambers and gangways
sgow which traverse a space of about
ph.If mile square, were all filled. As
a. water was lowered, the gas, which had
Ssen forming constantly since the fire,
S D 10 push its way through the water
!, z calculated that the water was charged
rnb millions of cubic feet of gas, more or
less the gas escaped up the shaft. The
FORK of bailing continued until about
n;ne o'clock on the evening OF the 9th OF
March. when suddenly a low, rumbling
.aund was heard below ground; and in a
uoment after, an explosion like a hun
1red EARTHQUAKES broke on the air, and
sent its terrible echoes along the valley
nr miles in every direction. The shaft is
LOCATED on a high hill, and instantly a
stream of fire, forty feet long and twelve
vide shot up into the air for distance of
IA feet. The whole country around for
miles was brightly Illuminated by this
rast column of burning gas. The houses
n the vicinity of the shaft shook like
reeds at the moment of the explosion, and
thousands of people turned out in terror
10 see what had caused the unusual COM
motion.
At Wilkesbarre, little distance in the
valley below, the loud report was heard,
and the great flame of light, shooting
beayenward above the shaft in the mount
ain. caused the greatest excitement, which
grew momentarily as the illumination
Continued. Those at distance could
only conjecture what the cause of the We
suyius counterpart was. Many people
really believed that volcano had broken
loose, and terror seized upon more than
one nervous witness. The tremendous
stream of fire shot up from the shaft for
three hours, loud explosions occurring
every fifteen minutes In the meantime
thousands of excited people from all sec
tons locked to the vicinity of the shaft,
and stood mute witnesses of the greatest
sight which any eye had ever looked upon.
II is supposed that as the water was taken
out of the mine, the pressure below be-
came lighter, and the gas, which had been
pushed back by the weight of the water
before, now mingled with the flood, and
tOsuch an extent that the water itself was
capable of being ignited at the touch of a
match; this must have been the case, for
one of the men, who stood near the mouth
of the shaft with lighted lamp when a
bucket of water came up, was splashed
by the overflow, and a drop falling in the
flames of his lamp instantly caught fire,
and in moment the frame heading which
stands over the shaft took fire; and as the
sparks dropped into the deep pit below,
they ignited the gas there generated, and
Of course an explosion followed.