Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-03-21
Terrible, Explosion in a Wyoming
Mine.
EIGHTY IMPRISONED IN TEE EARTH
Bringing Up the Bodies of the
Victims.
BURNED AND BLACKENED

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, March 2l.-A
special to the Tribune from Red Canyon
says:
A terrible explosion at Rocky Mountain
mine. No. 5, situated at Red Canyon, Wyo.,
Is believed to have killed eighty men, who
are imprisoned in the mine, in addition to
ten, who were in the power-house above
ground, or near the shaft openings. The
slopes and entrances to the lower workings
are all blockaded by wreckage, and it is
thought at least three days will be re-
QuiIed for rescue parties to reach the
bodies in the mine.
The horror occurred at 5:45 yesterday
evening at No. ), Central Pacific mine, Red
Canyon, five miles north of Evanston. The
explosion in the mine shocked the whole
country around, wrecked the power plant,
fan house and several other buildings, en-
failing heavy loss, but the death roll far
overshadows other considerations.
Edwin Cox, the outside carpenter; James
Bruce outside boss; James Clark, William
Sellers, jr., and James Gefnley, an Aus
trlan, were killed in the power house. while
o. Maltby, foreman; Jerry Crawford and
Andrew Mason were injured, and died soon
afterward, the last three being about the
power house at the time of the explosion.
A few hours later the dead bodies of Jas.
Lamb aid Fred Morgan were brought from
the slope, only short distance down, but
as this is written there is around the mine
a great throng of people, anXiously 1nqulr-
ing regarding friends known to be In the
mine. and all hope Of any of them being
alive Is gone.
No one, after seeing the CHASTITY spectacle
presented by the two bodies brought out OF
the slope, could have any hopes of any In
the mine being alive. Those bodies were
burned and blackened, with garments torn
to shreds, making it almost impossible to
identify them.
How many were in the mine at the time
of the explosion will take time to tell. but
The best information obtainable places the
number at over eighty. Nearly all known
to be killed leave large families.
The Work of Rescue.
Immediately after the explosion Super
intendent Bradley telephoned to Cranston
for all the physicians with an extra train.
The relief corps, carrying lanterns, got
ready to descend, in hopes of resc uing
alive some of the victims. The black
smith shop was turned into a dead house
with four bodies lying there. one disfigured
with its head blown off, the others less
nangled. Brave men had tried to descend
some Of the air and escape slopes without
success, and it was not until three hours
after the explosion that volunteer party
entered the main entrance to the slopes
and soon afterward returned with two
bodies They reported that caves stopped
further progress down the slope.
The rescue party went down to clear
away the caves, after which the searching
party again entered, and work in that line
is now going on.
This slope being down 1900 feet, with
nine levels. each one and a half miles long.
1t will probably require several days to reach
all parts of the mine A few lives were
saved because of the time of the explosion.
-e~ The Explosion.
The miners quit work at o'clock, and it
is customary for them to be near the en-
trance and come out just as the whistle
blows. number of men had come out
and some had just left the entrance to
the mine slope. away from the working
tunnel, when the explosion occurred, thus
escaping death. Zeke Baker and his father
and a brother came out five minutes before
the explosion. Zeke was hit by the timber
which killed the Crawford boy, but he was
not much hurt. John Hanna, a carpenter,
had just come out and was talking to Cox
and Bruce when they were killed, he be-
ing burned slightly, but it was understood
the following persons We're in the mine:
Willard Brown, John Locke, Joseph High
Butler, John Critchly, E. Sloan, John DeX-
ter, Charles Clark. Thomas James and
Samuel Hutchinson, George Hardy, VIM.
Langdon and son, John Feebee, William
Weedup and John Martin, jr.
A weigher was the only person in the
power house not killed. he being but slight
ly burned, except the engineer, who was
blown through the window but little hurt.
Around the mine is a population of about
1000.
A SOrrOwful Community.