Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1892-04-21
SEVEN MEN BLOWN UP.
Forcite Company's Works at Mt. Arh"E-
ington, n. ~, Wrecked.

orcite Company's Works at MI. ArhhE-
ington, n. ~, Wrecked.
Mount ARLINGTON, n. j., April Is
Tho works of the American Forclte
Powder Company on the shores OF Lake
Honatcong. about mile below here,
hlew ND about 3 O'Clock this afternoon
and seven men were blown to atoms.
The explosion occurred few minutes
after 3 O'Clock, and the five buildinSs
were shattered. What caused the ex-
nlosion will never be known. The
works consist of number OF small
buildings scattered at distance OF
about 800 feet from each other. MOST
of the buildings were used. IN the
mixing process, and only one
man man was employed in each. The
ether buildings, which stand further
away from the lake on the side OF the
mountain, are used tor the storage or
dynamite, nitro-glvcerinea and detonat-
ors. The works have been frequently
the scenes of explosions, but never 10
such an extent as to-day. The EXPOS
ion occurred while all the men were ut
, and created a panic. The men
working in buildings distant from those
blown up first heard a roar,
and the buildings in which they
were working shook and trem-
bled for fully minute; then came an
EXPLOSION which sounded far louder
than the simultaneous explosion OF
milf a dozen of the largest cannon.
The startled men rushed from their
work and saw q cloud of dust and smoke
flying through the air near the lower
part of the company's grounds. Ihey
knew in moment what had happened,
and fearing the conclusion might set OFT
the explosives in the other buildings
they ran for the mountain SIDE.
that no further danger was imminent,
they cautiously advanced TO the scene
of the explosion. The wreckage was
already burning fiercely. The men
went to work at once to overhaul the
wreck in search of the men who had
been ut work in the ruined buildings.
Within few minutes they succeeded
in finding two men, both OF whom were
badly injured. Meanwhile the COM
panys tire apparatus was run out
and water from the lake was
used to fight the fire. AS
soon as the flames were under control
called, and 1t was found that seven were
missing. A search for the bodies was
then begun. The searchers were most
w old employees of the company, and
knew that in case like the present
one it was useless to search among the
ruins. They found fragments OF flesh
and bones scattered over several acres
of ground In fact, they found over $50
pounds of flesh and bones, which is all
that remains Of the bodies of the
victims. What could pe found was
gathered up in boxes, and will be buried
by the company.
IS
says that it will be impossible to ascer-
buildings being separated and each IN
dependent of the other, it was seldom
that more than one mans life was i'll
danger. All of the explosions of the
past had been in the houses used for
mixing the explosives and the storage
looms had never before been affected.
The explosion has left little of the
buildings. There was one man who it
was possible might have been able to
tell the story, he said, but he was the
man at whose bench the first explo-
sion happened and consequently he
was dead.
The explosion shattered all the win
dows within two miles of the scene.
The glasses in the bar-room of Schpfers
Hotel were broken and the guests in
the house were greatly startled. AT the
landing the railroad depot was shaken
until the beams cracked and every pane
of glass in the building RS we'll as those
in the houses around were blown up.
There are two other powder companies
in this vicinity. The Atlantic Giant
Powder Company is at kenville, three
miles away, and the United States Stor-
age Department station is at Dover,
about seven miles distant. The explo-
sion was plainly felt at Kenville, the
employees thinking at first that it was Il
part of their own works.