The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1885-09-16
CRUSHED In A CAGE.
Terrible Fall of Rock in a Penn.
sylyania Coal Mine.
Four Miners Killed and Three
Others B.dly Injured.

An accident, resulting in the death Of four
mon and the serious and perhaps fatal injury
of three others, occurred tho other morning
at the Oakwood shaft of the Prospect COL
liery, belonging to the Lehigh Valley Coal
company, in the northern part of Wilkes
! barre, Penn. About o'clock Patrick Smith,
John j. Martin, John Gallagher, Patrick Nc
Groarty, William Harrington, Patrick Kcar-
ney, James Kearney Patrick Purcell, James
Peterson and Thomas Jenkins took their
places on tho "cage" to make the descent of
the shaft for the purpose Of going to work.
Tho shaft is 7G0 feet. deep. and ten men are
let down at n time When the mon had
almost reached tho bottom of tho shaft
a loud, rumbling noise was hcarl over.
head nnl Immediately there was
great crash, shower of heavy rocks, some
weighing rs much Mt 800 pounds each, crush
ing in tho top of tho cage and breaking
through sills and floor killing three of the
men outright, and injuring the fourth so bad
that he died shortly after being taken to the
hospital.
The names of the killed are john J. Martin,
a miner, aged thirty.five years, unmarried,
and living with his widowed mother; James
kearney, laborer, aged twenty-five, un-
married. John Peterson, miner, nged twenty
six, married anu living at Parsons, and
Thomas Jenkins, laborer, twenty eight years,
single, and resided at Miners Mills. Peter
son, when dragged out was still breathing,
and struggled little. but it was evident
that death was certain. He was. however
removed in nm ambulance to the hospital,
where he diei. He was bruised about the
head beyond recognition. The 4-inch steam
pipe mad been broken, and he was scalded
with the steam and water He was Swede,
and leaves n widow. to whom he had been
married less than three months.
Martin had a large cut in the right side of
his head, his hand was cut, and there were
bruises on other parts of the body. kearney
had cash in the side of his head Just back
of his ear, and his back was crushed. Ho
had been employed in the colliery long
time. jenkins was horribly mangled. His
head was split open, and his brains fell to
the ground and had to be gathered up by the
mon.
Those injured were Patrick Smith, bruised
in the side back and head; Patrick Pursel,
badly cut in the back, probably fatal injur.
les, eiid Patrick kearney, bruised in tho
hip and on the right leg When the news
of the accident became known there was
great excitement, mon, women, and
children iocking to the scene. The relations
and friends of the dead men gave vent
and sorrow. After the accident force OF
mon was put to work clearing away the shat
tered wreck Of the carriage, which had been
drawn to the top. Many of the iron bars
and castings belonging to it wore shattered,
and one of the sills n. stick of oak timber
about eight by twelve inches in size, was
broken, as was also an iron rail Of the track
laid upon the cage for the accommoda-
tion of the cars when run on it to be raisel or
IL, Or int ha A ~
the rock lay upon the ground near by which
had been drawn up on the cage. This piece
weighed upward of 200 pounds Several
pieces of stone must have fallen, and the fall
must have been 100 feet or more.
One of the exposed men on the shaft re-
lates the following story: "Going down the
shaft was standing almost precisely upon
the place where the hole was broken
through the floor Of the cage by the piece of
coming down against the side of the shaft
above and the smaller pieces striking the
roof, somehow stepped to the centre Of
and under the crossbeam, which sup
ports the roof. Others were running back
and forth to find a place Of safety, as all
knew whlt the sound meant. The position
saved me, as piec,s of tho rock struck the
side. NY lamp was put out, and rs
the carriage struck l made a step
and fell into the hole that had been
broken in the floor, one of the
smaller pieces Of stone hitting my hip I
got out Of the place and half fell Off into the
gangway. My presence of mind had not de-
serted me, and my first thought was for my
brother Jim. called to him, but there came
no answer. Then we searched the wreck and
found the bodies of the others, all mangled
and bleeding, and finally Jim, his foct on the
edge of the carriage and his body and head
lying over the edge and in the water. dead