The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-03-11
FATAL BOILER EXPLOSION.
4 Factory in Quebec, Canada,
Totally Demolished.
Over a Score of Bodies Taken
From the Ruins.

A boiler in the Quebec Worsted Companya
factory, at Hare Point Canada, in the out.
skirts of the city Of Quebec, exploded at
about 9:45 o'clock on recent morning, ccm.;
pletely demolishing the engine house and q
part Of the factory. A large number OF the.
employees were buried in the ruins, and on
the morning after the explosion twenty-five
bodies had been taken from the debris.
The late morning services in the Roman
Catholic churches were attended at the time
by thousands of Lenten penitents, when ths
services were interrupted by shock as Of g.
mighty earthquake, and as the churches
swayed came the thick, heavy thud Of q
startling report.
Insome churches and notably In st. Roche
there was quite panic, and the clergy with
difficulty induced the people to leave the
building quietly. ..
The explosion was that of the boiler Of
the Quebec Worsted Mills, an immense
building at Hare Point, 500 feet long.
The factory had been closed fortnight
while repairs were being made to machinery.i
and on the day Of the disaster the boilers
were being tested preparatory to work being
resumed when the explosion occurred. No
body knows how or why. Those who could
alone have told the story now Lie cold In
death.
Arthur Tweddle, Superintendent of the,
skilled engineer, was experimenting the.
work, assisted by the engineer Of the fac
tory, Thomas Stiles, John Lee, engineer, ofi
Montreal, and by three master mechanics
named John La Montague, Joseph Michauds
and William Francoeur, all Of whom were:
killed. ss.r5 4
The explosion lifted the roof Of the engine
house a considerable height in the air and:
carried 1t some distance away. The walls Of
the structure and the lofty smokestack tot
tered and fell. The dyehouse and two
hundred feet of the factory building were
levelled to the ground. Had the factory
been In full operation the loss of Life would
have been numbered by hundreds.
Eighty operatives who came to see II work
would commence that day had been sent
home ten minutes prior to the explosion.
About half the number were In and about
the building, and some are numbered with
the killed. Many more may still be buried
beneath the ruins. IA
Willing hands worked hard all day at ths
removal Of the debris, and occasionally their
masses Of humanity, sometimes little more
than limbs at others armless Or legless bod
les. 80
There are portions Of human remains thst
are recognized only by fragments Of the
clothes they wore.
The injured and dying were removed into
the Marine Hospital, close to the factory
where all the doctors In the city and q
number Of Sisters Of Charity attended them.
Most Of the wounded are so disfgured as to
be almost unrecognizable and narrowing
scenes we're witnessed on all bands as wives.
sisters or children, rushing among the rows
Of mangled, bleeding bodies, shrieked out the
name Of the husband, brother or father that
they had identified. t.s.s ..s
Firemen, factory hands, police and citi.
zens and men Of the regular regiments OF
Canadian cavalry and artillery worked Like
heroes all day long among the debris and the
snow to recover the dead and dying. lie
damage to the factory will probably exceed
100000.
Mr.. Harvey, foreman Of Messrs. Carrier,
Laine g. Co., Of Lewis, who were carrying
out repairs to the machinery and boilers,
says that he was In the engins-room
when the explosion took place. He
instinctively threw himself under the
shelter Of a large wheel, and 50 escaped be.
.ng crushed by failing bricks and raf9rs
gs was rescued half hour later, and has
,nly slight injuries. he cannot accouns LOT
the accident. .-..13,
The cause of the accident IS not at present
known, but it is thought some OF the pipe:
NAV have frozen while the fires were out, and
20 caused s.oppsge when steam was starred