Morning journal and courier., 1892-06-06
OIL CITY LAID LOW.

Never Before Tn Hts History Has It Beenvisited by Such a Disaster-The Cityfor MilesAround Startled byTSo Explosions-Oil Catches Fire with Serious Results - People Panic Stricken and Parents Looking for Their Lost ChiIdren-List Of the Dead.
 OIL CITY, Pa, June 5.-Never before in the history of Oil City and oil country has been such disaster, excitement and turmoil as this city is now witnessing. At 11:45 o'clock this morning the city and country for miles around was startled by two ex- plosions occur ring almost simultaneously. The Associated Press correspondent was standing in Center street, in front of the Derrick office, and on the approach to the Oil creek bridge. The Creek was raging torrent and Center street for one square was solid mass of humanity.
 Five hundred to thousand people had approached this point of vantage watching the muddy waters rolling by. At about 11:30 upon the opposite side of the stream a greenish fluid fl oating on the waters was noticeable. This increased rapidly in
 
 | almost entirely the muddy waters of the | creek. smell of gas and oil was per ! ceptible and several men began discussing the danger should the oil catch fire. | Hardly were the words uttered when about two hundred yards up the stream a mass | of flame was seen to shoot heavenward. "Run," yelled hundred voices, and the people turned like stampeded cattle and started for the hills. Hardly had they started when terrific explosion rent the air and the entire creek for hundreds of feet on each side seemed one seething mass of flame and smoke. The panic stricken crowd shrieked madly in their efforts to escape. Women and children were trampled under foot and about twenty were severely bruised and had to be picked up by few of the cooler heads and carried out of harms way. About half mile from the postofice northward from here on the Western New York and Pennsylvania road tank filled with gaso- line was standing on @ siding.
 Some men noticed the tank was leaking and knowing the fluids explosive nature and seeing an engine approach they ran up hill. Looking down as the engine passed they witnessed fearful sight. A mass of flame shot hundred fleet into the air and the earth shook violently. The engineer and fireman jumped from the cab, but it is expected they were burned to death O, killed by the explosion. In an instant the flames swept madly over the entire upper part of the city which is flooded by the oil waters of the creek. A few women and children who, moving from their houses were caught by the deadly flames, and il ; not burned to death outright were drown j ed in the raging flood. So far sever l ghastly bodies have been taken from tn, flood and are lying on the railroad tracl unrecognized.
 At this end of the city an iron bridge , went down five minutes after the fir, started. The huge structure was broker , and swept away like kindling wood. Tn fire department are making heroic effort
 to stop the flames and ris ing their live
 every instant, as it is not known at wha 6 moment many of the immense oil tank , above here will burst and send thei .- burning contents down upon them. Tn d Imperial Refining company's large tank e are visible from here aud nine of them ar Q burning. It is feared that the burning oi a will again come down the creek, and if . should little of the business portion o }. the city Miu rsnain standing. Paul