The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-02-22

by the gas leaking into the cellar of u two story
brick building occupied by r. Hillesly d
Bros, cigar makers. This building and an adj
joining structure, occupied by Luke Weller as a
saloon, also a substantial brick. were blown to
atoms. The debris took fire. The intense cold
gave the fire fall sway, and the flames spread
rapidly to adjoining buildings The shock of
the explosion was so terrible that glass was shat
tered and plastering shaken from the ceilings or
nearly every residence in town. The inhabitants
ran in all directions, terror stricken. great
many buildings were found badly damaged quite
distance from the explosion
The list of killed, SO far as received, IS as fol
lows: Conrad Hellesly, wife, mother and child
The infant babe of the above and John Walters
are still missing. Search is now going on. The
bodies recovered are terribly mangled owing
to the intense excitement. it is impossible TO
get the individual losses, but they will probably
reach total of $40, 600.
BIZ superhuman efforts the citizens got the
fire under control at o'clock A. NJ.
A special from Wellsburg gives the following
additional particulars:
About half past o'clock this morning terri
BILE explosion of natural gas shook the town to
its foundations startling every one. Citizens
rushed into the streets, not knowing what had
happened The cries of the people in the imme
date neighborhood brought every one to the
spot, where most neartrending scene was
presented The scene of the explosion was the
large buEiness and dwelling block owned and
occupied by Hellesly Bros, cigar manufacturers,
and Luke Walterss saloon, the families of each
residing over the bushes rooms in the build
ing. The whole building was demolished
and leveled with the ground. By
great efforts the fire was confined
to the building blown up and the two frame
dwelinghous adjoining. The whole family of
Mr. Hellesly, consisting of himself wife, mother
and two children were instantly killed. All the
bodies were easily recovered except that of the
youngest child, aged eighteen months, which
has just been recovered. burned to crisp.
Johnnie Walters, aged seventeen, is missing,
and is supposed to be buried in the ruins. Mr..
Walters, his wife and two other children were
badly injured, some of whom will not recover.
Several others are reported fatally injured The
houses for several squares away We're completely
shattered by the explosion.
At 6:30 this evening the body of John Walters.
son of Lucas Walters, was recovered from the
ruins. The infant child of Mr.. Hellesley is still
buried in the debris. The loss to property
amounts to $50, 900.
Later reports from the scene of the gas ex-
plosion at Wellsburg increase the horrors of the
singular disaster Six lives are known to be
lost. The eldest of the two children taken out
of the ruins was alive, but so seriously injured
that it died at A. M; the youngest child has
not yet been found. Mr.. Lucas Walters, his
wife, and two children, had narrow escape.
The missing named are undoubtedly In the
ruins. Mrs. Walters rec. wed injuries, but they
are not considered dangerous. Leonard Ester
day, a shoemaker doing business in small
frame shop adjoining the Walters home,
who boarded with Mr.. Walters, and was
asleep in his room at Mr.. Walters's,
received injuries not considered fatal The
firemen are throwing water on the ruins, en-
deavoring to cool off the debris so that search
can be made for the remains of the two missing
children.
AS to the cause of the explosion. it is reported
by reliable persons that Mr. Hellesley stated dur
ing the day and evening that the gas was leak
ing in his cellar, and that he had opened up some
of the approaches thereto to allow the gas to es-
cape, and retired for the night The suppose
ton is that the escaping gas found its way from
the cellar to the upper rooms of the house, and
coming in contact with the fire in the CRATES or
some gas get, the explosion took place