The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1890-09-09
A Premature. Blast Kills a
Score or More at Spo-
kane Falls.
A Wild Engine at Cleveland Makes
Kindling Wood Of Two Street
Cars. Killing Two People.
A Western Working Train Tslescopsd
and Many Killed---oshsr Ae-
cldents and Fatalities.

SPOKANE FALLS. WASH, Sept. s.--Just be-
fore o'clock Saturday evening premature
blast caused terrible havoc I'm the Northern
Pacific yards at this palnt- Ii vas just be-
fore the hour Of quitting work. and O large
force of men were engaged In blasting out O
huge rock pile In the freight yards In the
eastern part OF the city. From hfty 10
seventy Ave men were at work In the cnt
al the time.
somc OF the workmen were preparing abe
blasts TO be touched OF after the other
workmen and teams had departed for the
night. One blast had been prepared, and
In putting In the second IL was exploded, tho
Jar also touching or the irst blast. Twen-
ty-fve Thousand cubic feet Of rock was
thrown over upon the unsuspectiBg mass Of
humanity, with terrible resnlis. Hundreds
Of people soon gathered at this scene. aud
the work OF taking out the dead and In
jured haa since been going ON.
The mon who were engaged IN the work of
rescue were compelled 20 quit at III o'clock
at night because OF their near presence 70
ave other blasts that might be accidentally
exploded. Up 60 that time fourteen bodies
had been taken out OF the mass OF rock, and
there were twenty -soven men yet unac-
counted for. It IL believed now that tho
premature blast was caused by someone's
carelessness. II Is the custom 20
prepare the blasts and charge them
and at the hours OF II and 8.
after the men have left tho Of work and
gone % places of safety, 20 shoot them. In
this case one had been prepared and Fore
man Mcpherson was preparing second.
Either the rock was too hot from the drills,
or else the tamping exploded IL and that en-
ploslon also set OF the FIRST blast. The man
who was tampsng was blown to atoms, a.
well as McPherson and Others The man
who stood beside the tamper escaped with
slight bruises. although 81. 900 cubic feet OF
rock was hurled IN every direction. Another
man who was near the deadly blast, and
who was supposed 20 be dead. was seen
shortly after the explosion In d haif~crazed
condition. walking around with his clothing
torn 10 shreds.
The blasts are so Rrramgad fhAt rock \
/ tazsomn frsFn tho htli towAfd cat Nos an.
| tEclpatsng the blast. about thirty men weFs
under the clifT when tho explosion came,
Great masses OF rock and earth were raised
Ina shc air and pitched oyer into the cut.
buryIng tho mcn beneath its awful weight.
None OF them had time to run, but a few
escaped In a miraculous manner. One
hundred men were at work in the adjoining
cuts and ~ once rushed 10 the scene and
began the work of rescue. From tho hlg
mass of debris groans and shrieks ISSUED
| and the air was hiled with appeals Of
wounded and injured. In half an hour
however, all was stiil, except the noiss
made by the workingmen with their picks
4 The work OF rescue was resumed with
/ daylight aud continued until all tho roci
dislodged by the premature blast had beer
moved. No bodies were found In addition
| 10 the fourteen already recovered. on'
man died in the hospital and II Il reportss
4 two others died At their homes. Several o
the injured cannot 1--we. The general fore
Eaan now says there we're forty-two men Il
the gang In the cut. OF this number nfteeI
or seventeen are dead, eight In the hospita
and the whereabouts Of the others canno
be determined. The contractors think
however. that they win turn up all right a
roll call.