The evening world., 1889-01-19
LAST edition.
A Hateful BLAST.
Mysterious Explosion in an Uptown
Gas-Tank Excavation.
Huge Rock Upheaved on a Gang
Of Forty Laborers.
Eleven Men Wounded by Flying Debris
Foreman Hartman Arrested.

A terrific explosion shook East Sixty-third
street at about s o'clock this morning, and a
huge rock was hurled into the air among a
gang of workmen employed between Avenue
A and First avenue.
Patrick Cassidy, forty-seven old. of 1899
FIRST avenue, and Peter Reynolds. OF 252
West Sixtieth street, who were of the num-
Der handling pick.axes, were hit by pieces of
rock aud sustained painful injuries. Reynolds
had his leg broken, and sustained other
slightor injuries from cuts. Cassidy was
severely cut in the leg. Both men were taken
TO Roosevelt Hospital.
John Mulhall, forty years old, 1874 Second
avenue, was taken to this hospital and had q
scalp wound dressed.
Thomas FeIrick, thirty-eight wears old, 21A
East One Hundred and Eleventh street, was
cut in the lett breast, and went home.
Michael Vail, forty-one years old. 1886 East
Forty-nlnth street, was cut in the head. and
also went home.
jeremiah Hartman, foreman of the blast
ing gang, was about twenty feet from the ex-
ploslon and sustained no injuries. He was
aryest5d.
1t is reported that SIX. other men were
woun Ged by the flying debris, but their
names and addresses could not be ascer-
tainep.
The scene of the explosion was on and lust
south of SiXty-third street, between First
avenue and Avenue A.
Something like two hundred workmen
were employed there by j. d. y T. L. Grim
Minis, who have contracted to build a large
tank for the Consolidated Gas Company.
To do this it was necessary TO sink q cellar
20 the depth of hfty-two feet. extending be-
tween SiXt,y:-second and SIxty-third streets,
and something like 100 feet in width.
Ia one part of the lot the blasting and dig
ging out processes have created a depth Of
nearly FIFTY feet, or some twenty feet more
than on any other part of the ground.
The. lat blast, according to Foreman
Patrick Conley, was fired over n week ago,
but nevertheless this morning at about 8
o'clock. when over forty men were at work in
something very like II blast did occur and
caused the aforementioned injuries to work
men.
Con'ev and mother of the " bosses" both
claim that tho explosion was not due to an
uniired blast. Workmen who were
near by Mt the time the accident oc-
cured, also state that it was not an
untired blast, but in all probability a
Illuminating cartridge which some one of the
blast gang had allowed to stray from its
proper place.
There is no sign of a drill hole in any of the
rock left near the place of disturbance.
There Is, of course, no marked difference
IN appearance between the ground in the i'm
mediate vicinity of the accidental explosion
and other parts of the much-exploded
grounds.
Contractor Thomas f. Crimmins said to
THE EVENING WORLD reporter 1.-The acct
dent WINS probably caused by II missed hole.'
In blasting. five or six holes are made and
cartridges put into them, which are all ex-
ploded at the same time.
Occasionally one cartridge or more fails
to explode and remains IN a piece of rock
which is thrown of.
when they break this rock up, if they
strike the cartridge it will explode. That, I
think, is the way in which this accident CO.
CURED. 1t is impossible to provide e~tfectually
against such an accident"