The daily gazette., 1883-05-01
FATAL NINE EXPLOSION.
Three Men KilIed and Two Wounded by
q Great Rush of Gas

AsLAND, Pa, April 30.-There was a
heartrending scene at the Keystone Colliery
to-day. Three men are dead and two are
dying, as the result of an explosion. Scores
of women and children flocked TO the mouth
Of the pit, awaiting news from below. Their
cries were piteous, and when the dead
bodies were brought to the surface the grief
of the stricken families was awful to look
upon.
The Keystone Colliery is operated by the
Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron
Company, and is situated about one mile
from Ashland. 1t was built in 1862 by
Donaldson & Co., and the coal aid iron
company got control of it IL years ago.
There are two slopes, one 173 yards and the
other 153 yards, total depth of 326 yards.
The workings extend a mile each side. I'm
mense quantities Of gas are generated and
it requires an eighty y-horse-power engine
to keep the mine ventilated. thas been the
scene of large number ofterrinc explosions
in past years. and the dead of to-day are
added to a long list. At 10 O'Clock this
| morning gang of men we're at v ork
| Hskipping" pillars or removing the body OF
| coal standing between the breasts. Sud
denly pillar started 10 run. 1t brought
with it an immense volume of gas.
| Five men were at work in breast No. 4,
west gangway, when the gas rushed upon
them. Their names were Andrew Jones,
August Welker, Charles Tyler, Pat Reagan
and Coney Walker. The gas ignited, 1t is
supposed, from one of the miners lamps.
Weiker was an inexperienced miner, and in
the hurry and excitement he forgot TO put
| out his lamp. A terrific explosion followed,
/ and Reagan, Jones and Welker were In
stantly Killed Welker was blown dis
| tance of fifty yards, and almost every light
| in the mine was extinguished by the con-
cussion. A miner named Sweeney escaped
by crawling 200 yards on his hands and krees
An immense cloud of dust and smoke shot
out at the shaft, and the shock of the explo
sion was felt for mile.
On all sides intense excitement prevailed
Everybody knew just what had happened
and men, women and children seemed tc
spring out of the earth. They hurried tt
the scene of the accident and crowded
around the mouth Of the pit. The xac
; | particulars could not be had for a tima
| None knew how many unfortunate miner
were imprisoned or deal The women, will
blanched faces, gave way to grief in it
most violent form. Their walls could b
head for a long distance. When the frs
body was brought to the surface the wildes
scene ensued. Every one crowded about
Jones was a boy, 10 years, and as his mothe
bent over his blackened form she fainte
, dead away. She was carried from the seen
unconscious. Anxiously the crowd awaite
as each of the dead bodies were slowl
, drawn to the surface and mourntul proce'
sions followed the unfortunate men to thei
late homes.
Welker is seriously injured and 1t
= thought that he cannot recover. Tyler
: condition is pronounced hopeless and b
' death is momenIarily expected. He
sbockingly burned all over. All the c
a | resided around the mine and leave lars
:. families, with the exception of Andre
= Jones. Welker bad only started to work
- the mine few weeks ago and his careles
: ness and inexperience caused the explosio
a Reagan leaves wife and six childre
. Tyler also has large family. The eXcit
ment tonight is uuabated and the 81
affair is the theme OF conversation IN u
, vicinity OF the mine. Terrible as the expl
; sion was, the image TO the mine, stranl
n to say, is comparatively small.