Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-16
TOO MUCH SUCCESS
In Locating a Gas Leak With q Match
Causes a Bad Explosion.
TWO MEN ARE SEVERELY BURNED.
Lowering Lamp Into Tank Of Oil Re-
suits in Blaze.
FIREMAN FIGLEY's INQUEST ENDED

A serious gas explosion occurred about 4
O'Clock yesterday afternoon in the six-story
building of Hamilton, Lemon & Arnold, at
the corner of Sixth avenue and Grant street.
The explosion created panic among the
occupants of the immense building, and the
sound of the conclusion and the crash of
breaking glass brought thousands to the
scene. In an incredibly brief space Of time
the fire department was summoned and a
strong force of First District police were on
hand to keep back the crowds which focked
around the building. These precautions
were necessary for the preservation of life,
as it was feared that there might be another
explosion at any moment.
The trouble was caused by TWO men look
ing for a gas leak, and being singularly
unfortunate in locating it with lighted
match.
MARTIN FINDS THE LEAK.
Joseph Martin, the elevator engineer en-
ployed by Hamilton, Lemon & Arnold, who
own the building and use the basement and
first floor as a coffin and undertakers' supply
house, smelt escaping gas about 4 o'clock.
Together with Manager Taylor Douglass,
Martin explored the basement In the
vault under the sidewalk on the Grant street
side of the building was an artificial gas
bracket from which Martin remembered
having removed the burner on Saturday,
and he made up his mind that he had acci-
dentally turned the valve key and that that
was where the gas emanated from. He
struck match and applied it to the sus-
pected gas jet.
A flame about an inch high ignited from
the pipe and burned about ten seconds, when
Martin reached out his hand to close the
valve. Before he could touch the key, how
ever, heavy explosion occurred, envelop-
ing both men in flames and shaking the big
brick building from foundation to roof.
THE DAMAGE OF A MOMENT.
The fame lasted only an instant. and as
soon as it passed over Douglass and Martin
started TO run out. At the same moment
the glass from dozen windows on the Sixth
avenue side of the building was thrown in a
shattered heap on the street, halfway across,
and volume OF black smoke poured forth.
The occupants Of the offices in the upper
rooms were rushing. panic-stricken, down
the stairways to the street Some of them
had been knocked down, others had been
lifted from their chairs, and one or two had
been scared into q faint by the explosion.
When they reached the street and found
that the danger was over most of them re-
turned to their Offices. -.-
Douglass and Martin were taken out of
the basement by the firemen. Both were
burned about the hands, face and neck, but
neither dangerously. George Gordon and
John hewitt, two young men who had been
working in the basement with Douglass and
Martin, were knocked down by the con-
cussion, but were far enough away from the
fame to escape injury.
ATTENDING TO THE INJURED.
Douglass and Martin were taken to Nc
Cams drug store, across the street, where
their injuries were dressed, after which they
were sent to their homes Martins home
is on Lacock street. Allegheny. Taylor
Douglass lives on Webster avenue.
The actual cause Of the explosion was q
leak from a street gas main ON the avenue
side of the building, the firemen having
found the leaking gas burning through the
crevices between the foundation stones in the
vault under the Sixth avenue sidewalk, but
it has not been determined whether the leak
came from natural or Illuminating gas. The
odor strongly indicates the latter.
The loss cannot be definitely determined.
The building was terribly Jared, but it is
not expected thar it is seriously injured.
Outside of this probability the loss will be
under $4,000. A large number of plate
glass windows were shattered, the marble
Office directory was broken an0 more or less
plastering fell. Hamilton, Lemon &
Arnold's stock is not damaged outside of the
jarring some of the more expensive caskets
received.