River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1892-03-24
FRIGhIEul EXPLOSIONS.
Boilers Burst at East Jorsiars Mich, and
Near 1T. Louis-Seven Men Killed i'm the
Former Instance aud -Four i'm the Latter.

Boilers Burst at East Jordan. Mich. and
Near st. Louis-Seven Men Killed in the
Former Instance aud Four in the Latter.
CHARLEvoIx, Mich, March GA
terrible explosion took place at East
Jordan, this county. at an early hour
Monday morning. The big mill of the
East Jordan Lumber Company was
torn TO atoms, six men were instantly
killed and several fatally Infused by the
explosion of the boilers. The mill
had been running but ten minutes
when there was an awful shock and
the roof and all but one end of the mill
was rent asunder. The inside of the
big building is a complete wreck. The
noise of the explosion was heard at
this place, Il miles distsnt. and sew
eral carloads of people and physician
started at once for the scene of the ac-
cident
The six men who were killed out
right or died in a few minutes were:
Arbutus Cook. VIII Beach, Simon Car
ney, j. c. Brown, Peter Sheldon and
Nancy Hunt. A. Christy, the head
sawyer, who was stationed directly
over the boiler. was horribly mangled
and has since died
). Pearson who ran the engine and
was only few feet from Christy. es-
capped urinjured. The engineer who
has charge of both mills was James
Carter. lie had gone to breakfast,
leaving the fireman, John Ringle. in
charge. Ringle was in the engine
room at the moment of the explosion
and is dangerously injured, too badly
to be interviewed as to the cause of the
explosion. The other badly injured
men are James Smith. Sandy Rainhart
and Charles Brown all of whom are in
critical condition.
1t is impossible TO say what caused
the explosion. Pearson, the only man
in the mill who came out unhurt. says
it was probably due 70 low water or
too high pressure. A boilermaker from
this place did some repairs on the
boiler last week and it is said that
he tod the proprietors that he was
not satisfied with the job, but
owing 70 the peculiar situation could
not get at the work to fix il as he de-
sired. Several men were working in
the yard and the smokestacH fell on
the horse of one teamster, smashing
the cart and killing the horse. The
mill was valued at $40, 900, partially in
sured, and will be rebuilt
ST LOUIS, March %2.-As the result
of the explosion of boiler at the
works of the Laclede Fire Brick Manu-
featuring Company, Manchester road
near Sublette avenue, in Cheltenham,
st. Louis suburb, at 2:45 o'clock
Monday afternoon four men are lying
dead, two are fatally injured and two
more seriously hurt.
The dead are: Larry Bussey, aged
%, married, of 1882 Billion avenue.
crushed to death; Reynold Diedoke,
aged 40, married, 1916 Graham avenue,
thrown 100 feet into the air; Joseph
Beckley, aged 10, single, $3.50 Columbia
venue, thrown 100 feet in the air and
crushed to death; Joseph Dubuchy.
aged As, married, Brandon avenue,
thrown 100 feet into the air.
The wounded are: Frank Seeger,
aged 90, of 1880 Pierce avenue, fatally
scalded; Morgan Inman, aged %, sin-
gle, Sulphur avenue, piece of iron
blown into the skull also hurt about
the face and body, will die; James
Summerfeld, aged 80, married, 5117
Wilson avenue, badly cut about the
face, head, neck and body, will recov-
err John Pellel aged 40, Morganford
road, slightly bruised and injured in
ternally.
Several other men were shaken and
cut but not badly. The boiler explod-
ing was one of battery of six, which,
it is supposed, ran out of water, was
suddenly supplied with cold water and
the explosion followed. The boiler
house was completely wrecked, the
five uninjured boilers being unsealed
and piled in a heap.
Beckley, Dubuchy and Diedoke were
at work on the boiler-house putting up
whistle at the time of the explosion.
Beckley and Dubuchy were blown
high in the air, while Diedoke's body
was found on the third floor of the
clay-mixing building, having fallen
from SO great height as to break
hole in the roof, passing through to the
floor below. Every bone in his body
was broken and the head and face
crushed beyond recognition.
Dubuchy, who was assistant en-
gineer was blown high in the air. He
fell on the roof of the generating
house, a quivering, milling mass.
Becllley landed on the roof of the main
building, also horribly crushed. All
three of these men were undoubtedly
blown at least 100 feet in the air.
Bussey was found in the ruins of the
boiler house, crushed between the un-
sealed boilers. He lived few min
utes after he was found, but never
spoke. All of the dead were so hor-
ribly scalded that the flesh peeled
of wherever touched. The wounded
men were at work in the imme-
date vicinity of the exploded boiler
and were wounded by flying debris, by
the steam and by the force of the ex-
plosion itsel:, which hurled them 100
feet away, one, Inman, being blown
across the river Des Peres. The pc
cuniary loss to the company is from
$40, 900 to So, 600.