Griggs courier., 1892-01-29

ON FIRE FOR EIGHTEEN YEARS.
A Milion Tons Of Anthracits Burnins
Under Ground.
In 1873 fire broke out in the inside
slope Of No 9 .colliery, near Lansford.
in this state, and it is raging still with
all the fury which the very best Of fuel
can give it lis in bed Of coal two
thousand feet long, thirty feet thick
and four hundred and fifty feet deep,
and though 1t is covered with rock and
clay to depth ranging from thirty to
fifty feet, the stones on the surface are
80 heated that . parlor match laid on
them will ignite in an instant In one
spot the men employed at the diamond
drill Light their pipes with the super
heated pebbles. There is very little
external evidence of the fire. save the
constantly rising vapor and the noxious
gases that fill the air and at times kills
birds and small animals that linger too
long in the neighborhood.
The early history of No. 8 was very
uneventful until about 1873. 1t was
opened some thirty odd years ago by
! "Old Jim Andrews" and was worked on
the water level for some years without
serious accident, and without produ.
cling any considerable quantity Of coal.
The gangways were turned east and
west at q point 150 yards vertically be-.
low the surface, and a nun ber of breasts
were opened and continued to be worked
until the Lehigh Coal and. Navigation
Company reclaimed the place.
The company originally obtained
control of the largest tracts
upon the rental of an ear o1
corn per year, but, as may be readily
imagined, in lieu of paying the great
increase of rent demanded when the de.
velopments had been made, the com.
pany acquired title in fee.
The workings were all opened from
the foot of the slope, and the machinery
for pumping and hoisting was not only
in place. but working along smoothly
when the fire broke out. 1t is alleged
that Il handful of oily cotton waste was
used about the machinery and carried
perhaps by rats up the slope and behind
the timbers, igpited spontaneously anG
caused conflagration which has since
cost fortune in cash and coal. 1t i.
estimated that yard of coal in the
vein weighs a ton. The dimensions OF
the era in which the fire is now confined
and beyond which it can not extend
hereafter, indicates one million on
hundred and seventy thousand cub
yards or tons of coal involved. From
this must be deducted the small amount
which "Old Jim" Andrews and his sue
eessors mined and the portion which
may eventually be saved.
From all these circumstances the
statement will be the more readily cred
tied that in all the hundreds of mine
fires in the anthracite region the one al
No is unique. There are others which
have burned longer. East Pine Knot
few miles from Pottsville, has burned
more than thirty years without work
ing one-quarter so much destruction
At Wadsville, in the same neighbor
hood, there is mine which has burned
forty years. and at night is quite vol
canic in appearance, but which likewis,
did vastly less damage and was no
fought with the persistency which
marked the efforts at No. 6. Nor die
ifexhibit the stubborn resistance anc
energy which this has shown.
There are numberless instances of in
ternal fires which had much create
start than this and were snbdued in
short time, but they were below tn,
water level, and were quenched by turn
ing stream of water into the blazing
subterranean recesses. In the case O.
No. the fire started below the water
level, but it spread SO rapidly upward
that. while the slope fire was soor
drowned out, there wasno known wa,
of checking its progress above water
level, except by shutting out the ali
that is needed to support mbustion.
This was the first effort made. Brat
tices were built across the gangways
stopping every hole and crevice through
which air could reach the fire. TIL,
mine was practically hermetically
sealed. All pumping of water and al
was suspended, and the men were left t.
watch the result. In two weeks, whe1
reopened, it was found that the fir,
burned with increased fury. The at
tempt to smother it was failure. Ther
an effort was made to draw the fire, ane
men were engaged in mining the glow
ing Goals until one after another they
were overcome by the heat and gas, ane
several lives were endangered.
At various times men were so fa1
gone that their recovery was ubtful
General Superintendent William D.
Zehner was carried out in an uncon
cious condition, and for half day he
lay in the brush with excited men work
ing over his inanimate body. Anothe,
man was packed in an envelope O.
moist clay, with no part of his skin ex
posed but that which covered his nos
trils, and thus he lay for six hours be
fore returning life became apparent.
The third at empt was by drowning
Dams and bratticcs were constructed
across the tunnels. Two dams of brick
laid in the best cement, were bull
across No. 6, and one on the other.side
across No. Z, which cuts all the veins
and extends right through the entire
%osy Wnf =.