Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1893-04-13
800 MINERS EN- TOM BED.
FRloRTFUl- EXPLOSION OF GAS IN A
WELSH COAL PIT.
Seventy Mon Force Passage Out
Through Tire snd oke-Fearsd
that all tho Rest Have rerish.d-Rss.
cuors Driven Back with But Five Dead.

LONDON. April l1-A frightful mining
accident occurred to-day in Wales. A
spark from an engine ignitsd the gas in tue
cool pit near Pont-Y -Pridd, eausing.a terri
bic explosion. The exact number OF lives
lost is not known but 800 miners are en-
tombed' The epgins house is in flame. and
there is the greatest fear that moet OF the
miners have pershed.
Tn. rescuers who won't down were driven
back without being able to bring up moie
than five of the dead. The most agonizing
scenes are witnessed and throngs of rela-
tives of those below are crowded about the
mouth of the coal pit
Later advices from Pont-Y -Pridd say 3:
The pit is worked in sections, one seam
being above another. The fire resulting
from the explosion broke out in the eastern
section. From this section 70 men succs Cd
ed in reaching the surface through the main
dip working.
They had a terrible struggle to got out,
forcing their way through fire and smoke.
Many were scorchod and all were exhausted
when they emerged to safety. They express
Ell the fear that all those lett behind them
in the mine had pershed.
Additional Details of the Accident
have been received. TIE first alarm wa3
given at 2:30 this afternoon. The sparks
from an engine in a four foot ssam are
supposed to have ignited a pile OF cotton
waste. The flames spread to the wood work
and finally isnited the innammahle sas in
the sea m. Tae 200 men at work in the Eea IN
ran toward the landing. Many were over
taken by fire and smoke, fell. and were left
to ther fate. Comparatively few of the
men who were in the seam reached the land
ing.
AT the entrance Of the shaft a rascuing
party was formed by the pit surveyor. The
party got as TAR as the landing at this ssoin
where the fire started, but was driven back
by denss smoke. The surveyor took his
mon bacs to tho surface.
Altar hours rest they went down again
and forced their way 10 yards in the work
ings. They found four dead bodies which
they brought bnck with them. Attempt to
60 further into the workings were vain. a
the woodwork was burning and large
masses of ruins were failing incsssantiy
| from the roof. One of the rescue party
| who veutured too far was killed.
The men who saved themselves are unable
| to give any clear account of the distribu-
! tiou of the miners in the mice. Hand
! grenades, barrels OF wates and pipss at
taohed to fire engines on the surface, were
used to extinguish the flames in the mine.
| In two sections OF the mine the FIRE was
put out. The extinction of tho flames we.
followed in each case. however, by the ac-
cumuation of gas. Another attempt to
enter the seam in which the fire started
proved resuitless
Although tine rescue party saw six dead
bodies they we're prevented by smoke an /
heat from reaching them. The number OF
men still in the niue cannot bo a.
certained, although it is known to DO well
above 80.
AT midnight the fire was again burning
in al sections OF the mine near the shaft
| The service pipe which was used to pour
water into tue mine has burst, The diff
ficuitios IN the way of quenching tho fire
have increased greatly aud the rescue OF the
men bsow is regarded as hopeless.