The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1888-11-15
Dlsastrcus Nine Explosion.

The officers Of the Kettle Creek Coal Mining
company belonging to Williamsport, Pa.
ore in receipt Of Information that terrible
explosion occurred ut their mines located In
Clinton county on the line ofthe Philadelphia
& Erie railroad. The superintendent, George
L. Miller, upon hearing o heavy report pro-
ceeded to the spot, when he ut onca saw that
violent explosion had taken place.
The necessary arrangements were quickly
made to carry the air to the face
work, and men entered the mine to
learn the particulars OF what had
occurred. An appalling state Of affairs was
found to exist inside. OF the twenty-one men
who had been working in the drift only three
or four had escaped death or injury. At the
end of an hours hard work fourteen dead
bodies were recovered from the drift. Two of
those who were injured subsequently died.
One man was missing and his remains were
found out in the woods, where they had been
the air shaft. The total number of killed or
fatally injured was foundtto be seventeen. All
but fouro OF them were Hungarians or Italians.
The force of the explosion was shown in
the fact that bodies were blown clear out of
the mouth ofthe drift. Everything possible
was done for the injured by the mine physi-
clans. The bodies of the dead were taken
charge of by all undertaken and prepared for
interment.
1t is thought that in making a blast q
"gas feeder" was struck, filing the chamber
with gas which coming in contact with a
naked lamp produced the explosion. A"gas
feeder Is q pocket of gas imbedded in the
coal. As soon as a pick is struck into it the
gas escapes and If anything ignites an explo-
sion follows. It is generally conceded that
there was good ventilation, and the mines were
fully supplied with air appliances. The su-
perintendent Jay the accident could not have
been foreseen, n hat no blame attaches to
any one. . %.
Many rumors are going the rounds, and
among them is one that the direct cause of
the explosion was the inexperienced use of
dynamite in the mines. In conversation with
one of the drivers who escaped it was learned
that On Italian had gotten 100 sticks of
the deadly stuff from the storekeeper
in the morning, aud had also gotten
100 caps and had returned after
II fuse, bnt as there were none in stock it Is
supposed that he had tried to set it off in
some other way, thus causing the explosion.
In a blacksmith shop near the scene of the
disaster laid the charred and unacceptable
remains of August Person, who was blown
out through the DIR shaft fifty feet in the air,
and some of his clothes can be seen hanging
to a limb OF a tree near by. Next to him is
Mike Currens, who was blown 200 feet out of
the mouth of the mine, and was found dead
in a ditch still clinging to the handle of his
shovel.
John Farrell, q mule driver, tells this story:
l was behind pushing the car, and in sticking
up my head, saw a fash. l Immediately
dropped to the ground, moving quickly as
possible toward the mouth of the drift, and
escaped uninjured. My mule and a Swede
miner along side the animal were. killed in
stantly. l felt but little of the effects of the
explosion, and it's force must nave been all
above ME, although all the timbers at the
mouth OF the shaft were carried out 200 feet
beyond the mouth of the drift.