The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1895-01-24

| plosion came from. lie mad turned tue
| water Oh a moment or two before tne eN-
plosIon came. After it occurred he ran
| around up IN front of the warehouses.
| The keuyon-Conuel warehouse was en-
| tlrely demolished while that OF the Butte
| Hardware company was partly detroye eel.
| lie saw that the iremen had all been
killed and after looking around for a
minute or two he started TO run to the
Montana Central depot to telephone for
help as he saw he could do nothing aionc.
he was about so feet from the Butte Hard
ware company warehouse when the sec
ond eNp.oslon occurred IN that building.
he then ran up town tor help. de con-
sidered the first explosion tile heaviest.
lie saw iron pipes aud steel sheets which
had been thrown around 10y the first eN-
plosion.
L. l.. Manchester was one of the eye
witnesses 10 the horrible affair. and he
told the following story of it: Il reside
at No. 211 Arizona avenue. which is about
two blocks and half from the Montana
Central depot. When / heard the whistles
blowing on Tuesday evening Albert Nolk-
mar and / ran up to the scene. l climbed
through a tram OF cars and passed be-
tween the, Hardware company's warehouse
and that OF the kenyon-Conueli company.
There were about SIX people there then.
Inc fire was III the northwest corner OF
the henyon-Connell warehouse and tue
interior of the building was a solid sea of
flame, winch forced its way through every
crevice. In a few minutes the tire depart
ment arrived. The hook and ladder truck
stopped directly in front of the building
and the hose wagon. after bringing up the
line of hose, turned around and stopped
directly north of 1t. just after the fire.
men went to work there was a little puff
of powder, winch did no damage, but
frightened the spectators. One fireman
took an axe and started to chop III the
double doors at the north end. Another
fireman with "a helmet and white gum
coat started to chop an opening at the
northwest corner. Another fireman
behind him was trying TO pull
off the iron covering with
hook. Two other firemen were right be-
hind them with the hose on the west side
of the northwest corner. Then came the
first heavy explosion which knocked us
all down and my friend and l were the
only ones that regained our feet. When
l got up and looked around | saw the
hook and ladder truck lying about - feet
north of the northeast corner of the build
ing and the hose wagon was lying about
% feet north of ii. The firemen we're all
dead and burning waste was falling
around them SO thIckly that | was afraid
they would he burnt up. We heard n cry
for hell from near a piece of smokestack
which had been blown about 20 feet in "a
northwesterly direction and on going over
badly hurt. While my friend looked after
him | ran back and pulled some of the
burning waste off from the fircmen's
bodies so that they would not be burnt up.
After that | went back 10 where my friend
was standing and then started home. |
was directly i'll front of the Hardware
company's warehouse when the second
explosion occurred. A dark red flame
shot out seemingly within about six feet
OF me and l was knocked down and
stunned. l don't know how long
| lay there but just as
raised upon my hands and knees the
,hlrd explosion went off and | was
knocked senseless again. The second
and third heavy explosions were in the
warehouse of the Butte Hardware com
pany. The second explosion was heavier
t han the first big one. | didn't recognize
any of the firemen and did not see any
OF them alive after the first heavy cXplo-
sion. The first powerful explosion threw
the greater part of the Kenyon-Connell
warehouse about 10 feet from where it
had stood in "a northeasterly direction.
after this explosion l noticed fire in be-
tween the warehouses of Caplice q Co.
and the Butte Hardware company. |
didn't notice the nature of any of the
debris that was thrown about by any of
the explosions"
CHIEF LEYDEN.
Chief of Police Leyden was next called
He said: "When the fire alarm was
turned in l was in the city Jail. walked
down to where the fire was. | had got
between Borthwck's store and the half
way house when l saw the first puff or
flash. | went on and had reached the
Garrison house when the first big eNplo-
sion took place. l ran to the Great North
ern office TO telephone up town for help,
because / knew ali around must have
been killed. man in there told mo to
look out, the building was going to fail.
| went up by ii. l.. Franks Office
and got In to where the boilers
and pipes we're and there were men lying
all around there. That was before the
second big explosion. | helped carry
man out and laid my coat over him. We
went after another wounded man who
was in danger of burning up. | was
straight north of the Butte Hardware
building when the second great explosion
occurred. / was thrown over. | thought
the explosion came from right straight in
front of me from the Largely building.
When / first got there l had noticed no
fire in the Largely building. / thought
there were number more lying around
who had been killed or injured by the Sec
ond explosion. / was injured in that Sec
ond heavy explosion. / was burned Oh
the scalp. | think was INJURED by blaz-
ing oil or some burning substance falling
from above"
EDWARD BUZZARD.
Ed Buzzard was called and said: a.
am hack driver. | started after the first
big explosion with Wesley Warren and
Charley Shaw TO the fire. / had reached
Franks botiling works and told them +
didn't want to go any further. Then
Chief Leyden came up and asked ma. 10
drive on IN aud get out some wounded Z
drove in and stopped with my horses fac
ing north and was west and north of the
Butte Hardware building. / was probably
- feet from the northwest corner of he
Butte Hardware building. | stopped
there TO have some wounded men
placed in the hack. 1 was leffiu
down the top to get them in more com
Portable. While doing this saw the bias
Of the second big explosion. IL looked To
me to come from between the two ware
houses. Before this explosion the Butte
Hardware building did not seem to be on
fire. could not tell from which building
the second big explosion came Sheet
iron and a bellows fell around my hack as
a ~ xr4fr.