The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1894-07-30
The Survivor Tells How the I'm
fortunate Men Came to Meet
Their Doom.
THE FIREMAN STUBBORN
He Evidently Discovered he Had Made
a Mistake, but Would Not Submit
to the Judgment of a Sub
Ordinate-A Statement.

No. 4, operated by the Lehigh Valley Coal
Company, Saturday night, has resulted in
the death of four men and terrible scald-
ing of fifth man, but the latter will
recover. The victims were
KILLED.
JOHN MILLER, Girardville; 80 years
fireman killed instantly wife and three
children.
JOHN LAUBACH, Shenandoah % years
pumpsman; died at his home; single.
DARBY SHIELDS, Shenandoah 45 years
engineer; died at his home; widower
with six children.
JOHN MALINGo, Shenandoah; % years
ashman died at the hospital; wife and
two children in Austria.
INJURED.
STEVE SHELsICK, Smoky Hollow; 90
years assistant fireman; will recover
wife, but no children.
The boiler which exploded was one of a |
nest of twenty-one and was in charge of |
John Miller, the victim who was instantly |
killed This boiler had not been in use
for a week and fire was started under it
but two hours previous to the disaster.
All the victims were in the boiler house,
but only one of them was struck by the
flying debris.
The explosion occurred at about 81
O'Clock Saturday night Residents of the
vicinity say the report was a compari-
lively light one; in fact, two men who
drove along the public highway, which is
about hundred and fifty yards north of
the boiler house, say that it was escaping
steam and not the noise of an explosion
that attracted their attention, and they
continued their journey to this town with
out really knowing what had happened.
The first to arrive upon the scene after
the explosion were Mar Foley, an eugi-
neer, and Nicholas Brennan, the night
watchman. The former was in the Buck
Mountain engine house a short distance
northeast of the boiler house and Breu-
nan was at the breaker when the report
was heard. Foley hurried down the hill
and first met Steve Shelsick, who eN-
/ citedly told the engineer to 90 to the
boiler house as quick as possible, that
some men were killed. Shelsick then
started down the railroad track towards
Smoky Hollow, running like a deer
Foley next met Darby Shields. The vic
tim was in terrible agony, but was able to
] walk and pleaded pitiOusly to be taken
home Foley took him as far as the house
of Mrs William Baiubridge and that lady
escorted the unfortunate man until she
, met her husband at Brownsville. Balm
bridge then walked with Shields to the
latter's home. at 5l4 East Lloyd street
MEANWHILE Foley, Brennan and others
had gathered at the boiler house to help
the other victims. Miller had evidently
died from scalds and shock. His body
( was found in the boiler house. 1t was
carried out and sent to Girardville. John
Laubach was picked up unconscious. He
, was terribly scalded and had a wound on
the back of his head which appeared to be
fracture of the skull. As none of the
, men We're hurled any distance, it is
t believed that the injury was inflicted by
flying debris of some kind. John
r. Malingo, the other victim, could not be
5 found. He started on a run to Shenan-
doah and none of the colliery officials saw
him again until he arrived at the Miners
; Hospital
Laubach died shortly after reaching his
home on West Coal street, this town
. Darby Shields suffered Intense agony
until half past eight o'clock last night,
when death relieved him. He was terribly
, scalded from the head down to the ab-
e domen and his arms were in a very bad
= condition. Malingo arrived at the
Miners Hospital at Fountain Springs yes
I terday afternoon, some friends having
taken him there in wagon, DIR. Biddle
] Hdlh nc W Nd' hhhA1 nNdAhNh lIblll Tue waist
up and his case was hopeless. Shelsck
was taken to the hospital in the colliery
i ! ambulance. His face, chest and arms
were pretty badly scalded, but his chances
: for recovery are very good.
From the havoc played with human life
b one would suppose that the boiler house
7 had been blown to pieces, but such was
b not the case. Considering the circum-
stances, the house was in a remarkably
> good state of preservation. The rear or
, east end Of the building was knocked out
:, and one of the large smoke stacks just
outside of that end was knocked to the
ground. About one half the roof was
4 stripped OF the shingles, but the rafters
= remained intact The rear half of the
~ boiler fell about twenty feet outside the
building.
J. Hundreds Of people visited the scene
u yesterday, among them mine officials
Z, from all parts of the valley. Mine In
spectors William Stein and John b.
l. Granger spent several hours there. For a
# time the cause of the explosion seemed a
" mystery but during the day an investi
n cation brought out developments which
show pretty conclusively that the respon
&, sibility for the disaster rested with Miller
\ the fireman.
Il The disaster was reported early yester
n day morning to w. A. Lathrop, genera
!. superintendent Tor the Lehigh Vale,
n Coal Company, and that official directe,
that the statements of the survivors b.