The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-11-27
FIVE MEN BURNED
In RICHMOND SHAFT
Three Of Them Are in q Bad Condition
But viii Recover.
OTHERS ESCAPED LESS SERIOUSLY
They We're Working on Platforms
Jumped Twelve Feet Into the Y ter
in the Sump..T The Gas Came -.
From the Bottom Where 1t Had
Accumulated.

Five men were burned by gas in the
Richmond shaft yesterday afternoon.
Three Of them We're badly roasted
about the face, neck, upper chest and
hands, but they will recover, and the
other two We're more fortunate in not
being in the direct path of the flame.
Richmond shaft is located on the edge
of the Lackawanna river. near the
Providence city line.
The men We're timbering the shaft
when the gas ignited. Fred Muddy. of
247 Parker street, a middle aged mar
ried man. with family of six li;tle
children, and Thomas J. Courtney, of
2SlO North Main avenue, a young un-
married man employed as pump run
ner at the shaft, were standing on a
platform about twelve feet from the
bottom. and both were very severely
burned.
John Ryan, 90 years old. unmarried,
living on the Boulevard; John Garden,
of Green Ridge, also unmarried. and
Thomas Hall. of Electric avenue, Dun
more, an elderly man, and married.
were on another platform, about fif-
teen feet above the platform on which
Muddy and Courtney stood, and, except
Ryan, escaped with burns not very Sc
rious. But Ryan was burned the
worst Of all.
BETWEEN TWO VEINS.
The shaft was recently sunk to the
bottom vein, but no coal has been
mined from 1t yet. The five men were
at work between the lowest vein now
being worked. and the one recently
reached. Earlier in the day the gas in
the vein above them ignited. but they
had no fear then that the flame would
reach them. The air current in the
shaft was strong and of sufficient
quantity to insure safety They kept
on working. not dreading danger. but
gas, it appears, began to creep up from
the bottom of the shaft, and it in
creased in volume sufficient to reach up
to where Muddy and Courtney were
working, and their lamps set it off.
There was no explosion such as US
ually results from gas taking fire. Ii
was not strong enough for that, but
it flashed up and died away almost
instantly. Not expecting any such oc-
curence the men were in no way pre-
pared to save themselves. and they
got the full force of it. The two men
on the lower platform We're in the hot
test place.
Mildy's clothes caught fire and the
first thing he did was to jumy from
the platform into the water at the
bottom to save himself. There was
enough water tnelp almost TO cover
him up. and he remained immersed in
it for several minutes. during which
time his suffering was intense. Court
ney did not jump ana remained on the
platform until assistance reacned han
and he was brought outside.
THREW THEMSELVES DOWN.
Ryan was closer to the edge of the
upper platform than the other men
on 1t. and in that way he got more
of the flame as it shot upward. The
three of them lay on their breasts with
their heads covered uD until assist
ance came. for fear of another flash
of flames from below.
Mildly and Ryan were brought to the
Lackawanna hospital at 4.3O in the af-
ternoOn, and they were attended to by
DIR. Blanchard. They were resting COM
fortably last night and will be able to
leave the hospital in about three weeks.
Ryan's face Is almost like white wax
from the roasting he received. and his
hands are in similar condition.
Courtney, Garden and Hall were TAX
en- to their homes. The fire did not do
any damage to the shaft