The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-11-16
Explosion I'm a Sewer.
THE STREET TORN OPEN AND HOUSES BADLY
DAMAGED.
Philadelphia Press.


Philadelphia Prcss.l
At half-past 3 O'Clock yesterday after
noon people living in the neighborhood OF
Sixth and Seventh and Dickinson streets
were startled and partially stunned by an
explosion in the sewers that sounded like
the firing OF park OF artillery. Man
holes and inlets along Dickinson street
and on Sixth, below that street, were blown
up. and shoots Of flame and smoke leaped
forth. Large pieces OF iron were thrown
in every direction. The iron crate on the
man-hole in front of Blomer's drugstore
was thrown high in the air, breaking q
telephone wire forty feet from the ground
and falling on the opposite corner.
The large iron top OF the man-hole nj
Seventh and Dickinson streets, weighing
about 100 pounds, was thrown some dis
lance from its place, and the pavement In
the street was thrown in all directions
from some Yards about. Half OF the iron
grating was thrown q distance OF 100 feet
ON the roof OF the school-house. panic
was caused. the children rushing down
stairs. The citizens, fearing to have their
offsnrjnQ issue from the Diekinson-street
side. broke down the wooden gate on
Seventh sti eet, and so gave them egress in
that direction. Floods OF water and mud
wee thrown out Of the inlets at Sixth and
Dickinson, and the windows on Sixth street
from Dickinson to Enterprise were shat
tered. The bottles and glasses in Rem
shaw's saloon, on the corner, were set to
iinglng, and the bulk-window was bro
ken. The house OF James kirkpatrick,
on the northeast corner OF Enterprise and
Sixth streets, had thirty-four panes OF
glass broken. In the bo6scs Of Joseph
/ Van Zant. at 1907, David Foy, 1909, ana
/ United States Engineer Henry Cuen, l5ii
/ south Sixth street. not only were all the
panes of glass shattered. but the sasbes
were forced in. The Republican Club
House. mt 1914 south Sixth, bad lis iront
windows smashed It's walls cracked, and
/ mass OF sewage forced up through Tue
pipes into the house. The street ana sac
walk were literally strewn with minute
| fragments OF glass. In many OF the cellars
in the neighborhood traps were thrown
open, and a quantity of gas escaped into
the houses.
People in the street rushed into the
houses 10 get out OF the way OF flying iron
and paying-StoneS, and people in the sa'
looms and houses rushed out into the
streets. thinking that the buildings were
/ DtlnE Itltitu uOhil WI thNii hNs'A' ~ '''
earthouake. Immediately after there was
strong smell Of Illuminating gas, mixed
with other foul odors from the sewers.
Rcstein's chrome factory. at Seventh and
Dickinson, discharges large quantities OF
chemicals and oils into the sewer, and Il
is thought that the late high winds and
tides have forced the water up INTO the
sewer and generated sewer gas, which,
mixed with illuminating gas which es'
capped from the main conduit. Formed
highly c0mbustibe compound. 1t Is sup
posed that in some manner this mixture
took fire spontaneously, and the result wa
an explosion which seemed TO be simulta
neous throughout the sewer from the cor
ucr OF Seventh street to Sixth and Enter
prise.
Bv almost miracle nobody was injured
although there were many persons anC
vehicles in the street.