St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-11-05
IN A BURNING HE'LL.
Thousands Of People Perish
in Flames.
BRITISH STEAMSHIP FIRED.
Loaded With Dynamite, an
Explosion Follows.
SCENES I'M A SPANISH TOWN.
Civil Governor and Leading
Officials Killed.
SCENES I'M A SPANISH TOWN.
DESTRUCTION WAS TERRIBLE.

MADRID, Nov. 4.-Private kilograms
received here say that over thousand
people met their death by the fire and
explosion at Santander. In addition a
transatlantic steamer was burned at
the same time. and forty of her crew
met death on board of her.
A most startling message was re-
ceived late last night from a small
village near the city of Santander,
capital of the province of that name
and situated little over 200 miles from
this city, announcing terrific eXplo-
sion of dynamite. which bad killed the
governor of the province and a large
number of people, including several of
the leading citizens and which had also
set fire to the city and caused immense
damage Oh all sides. Further particu-
lars were unobtainable last night owing
to the fact that ali the telegraph wires
In the vicinity Of Santander had been
blown down by the explosion, but dis
patches are now arriving from the vii
lage of Boo, which bring particulars
concerning the really terrible disaster.
morning is to the effect that a steam
ship, believed to be the steamer Volo,
British, of $40 tons, which reached SAINT
ander from Cardiff. caught fire yester-
day evening, to the intense alarm of the
port officials, who feared that the flames
would cause further damage to ship
ping to the quay, near which she was
moored, and to houses in the vicinity.
The officials of Santander seem to have
been unaware that the Volo was loaded
with dynamite, for they sent all the fire
department to the scene, the governor
of the province, the cnief municipal
officers and many of the leading citizens
of the town experimenting the efforts
to subdue the fire on board the Volo.
Suddenly there were cries of alarm
from those working about the Volo, and
the
ALARMING NEWS
spread with rapidity that the ship was
loaded with dynamite, and that the
flames were rapidly approaching the
terrible cargo. Before the crowd had
time to rush backward there was dull
roar, followed by fearful burst of
flame and deafening explosion which
blew the quay into fragments, set fire
to number of adjacent houses, and
which smashed the windows in every
house for miles around.
The Inhabitants after the explosion
were reduced to state of the most ab-
ject terror, and the most alarming re-
ports were circulated as to the loss of
life caused by the explosion. Some of
them had it that hundreds of lives were
lost and others claimed that only fifty
were killed by the force of the explo-
Bioh.
The explosion, in any case. shook the
whole city and did au enormous amount
of damage. Many citizens were killed,
including several representatives of the
municipal and provincial government
who were watching the efforts by the
firemen and others to eXtinguish the
fire.
Among the prominent people believed
to have been blown to atoms by the eX-
plOsion Is the governor of the province,
VINO was last seen in the front rank Of
those
FIGHTING THE FIRE.
Many others who were upon the
wharf a moment before the dynamite
blew the ship and wharf into splinters
are missing. The inhabitants were so
GaZed by the explosion and 10y the rapid
spread of the flames from house to house
that for long time afterwards they
any effort to check any further spread
of the fire, which, as these dispatches
were sent from the villages, were still
eating house after house and threaten
ing the destruction Of the entire city.
All towns and villages In the neighbor-
hood of Santander have sent their fire
engines to the scene. and a strong and
combined effort is being made to save
the property.
The town of Santander is situated
on headland and has a large port in
the Bay OF Blscay; it is the terminus of
a railway from Madrid. Further de-
tails received here regarding the terrible
dynamite explosion at Santander SAYS
that in addition to the officers reported
killed, the president of the provincial
council and the colonel and chief Off
GERS of the civic guard of Santander
were seriously wounded by the explo-
sion. 1t is also announced that the
whole city is likely to be destroyed. and
a large number of its population of over
10000 people will be rendered homeless.
A dreadful panic prevails upon all sides,
though engines have already arrived
from many points, and the most deter
mined efforts are being made to prevent
any further destruction of property.
All those on board or near the dyna-
mite steamer and all those on board the
tug boat alongside of her, as well as the
officers and crew of the Atlantic
liner, Alphonse XII, were killed by the
explosion.
The body of the civil governor, who
was directing the operations on the
quay, has been recovered, as we'll as the
bodies of number of other officials.
Among those reported killed is the Mar
QuiS Pombo.
1t has been ascertained that the dyna-
mite-loaded steamer which caused this
terrible destruction was the Cabo Muchi-
caco. belonging to Bilboa, and not the
British steamer, as was at first re-
ported.
The authorities of Santander are
highly censured on all sides for allow
ing the steamer to violate the port regu-
lations. which forbid the discharge of
explosives at the quay side; on the
other hand, it is claimed that the au-
thorLieS were not aware of the danger
Gus nature of the steamers cargo or
they certainly would not have been so
foOlhardy as to venture on board of her,
and to allow thousands of people around
her while she was OH fire.
Every possible assistance has been
sent to Santander, where hundreds of
doctors are already at work.
y number of temporary hospitals
have been organized in buildings un-
touched by the flames, and there the
doctors and their assistants are doing
everything possible in this dire extrem-
iiy. he troops sent to the spot are also
rendering great service in blowing up
buildings across the pathway of the