The herald., 1896-02-20
-FOUR BODIES RECOVERED
OF the Fifty in the Vulcan
Mine
.-...t
EXPLORATION IS IMPEDED
By Black Damp Bringing Deaih 10 the
Workers
Only Eight of the O.ad Miners Were liar
ried - A careIessIy Tamped Blast
Caused the Disaster

Associated Press Special Wire. t4& ,s
NEWCASTLE, Col, Feb. 19.-The princi.
pal work at the wrecked Vulcan mine to.
day was the pumping Of air into the drifts
to drive out the smoke and gas so as TO
permit rescuing parties to reach the bodies
of the victims. The total number Of killed
is now known to be forty-eight. All others
whose names appear on the company q
books have been accounted for. Only eight
of the dead men were married. Up to
o'clock this evening but four bodies had
been recovered, including that of Ed
Welch, the rope rider, who was killed at
the mouth OF the mine.
Examinations 80 far made show that the
workings to the west of the main stope are
badly wrecked, and it may require days of
the dead miners. The eastern portion OF
the mine is not damaged much, and It ia
thought no difficulty will be found in ex.
ploring it when the bad air 10 driven out.
Atl1:3O today, when the work of res.
cue was temporarily stopped for the pur
pose of flooding the stope and chambers Of
the mine with air. the Vulcan mine had
yielded up four of it's dead. How many
more bodies remain within is still matter
for conjecture, but the most reliable esti-
mate is forty-seven. Officials Of the Vul-
can Fuel company have checked up fifty
one lamps given out yesterday morning. ii
will probably be found that four or five
more we're given out, but the number of
victims in any event is not likely to exceed
fifty.sx.
riolls throng. He is the mipe carpenter
who came out of the Vulcan mine yester.
day twenty minutes before the explosion.
The gases became so thick bis eyes gave
out and he was obliged to quit work. Mine
Inspector Griffith, who is now on tue
ground, says this is the worst colliery dis
aster that ever occurred IN America.
Officials of the Vulcan company and
others in authority are comforting as to
how to proceed with the work OF clearing
the mine.
The list of killed. as corrected up to 2
o'clock this afternoon, is as follows: James
Harrison, John Funke, Emil Funke,
Charles Merchant, Thomas Addison, Louis
Cina,ti. Fred Rodemsky, Peter Peterico,
Daniel Morris, James Gabriel, Frank
Russa, Frank Cimensie, Chris Brugger,
Batiste Ceopwhett, August Mateve, John
Seattle, Alex Seattle, Phillip Rhoda, Tim
othy Carney, David Davis, David Y. Evans,
Anto Martino, Peter Brecker, Fred Sig
mund, Anton Patricio, John Pastoria,
it,, Joseph Dore, William Dore, John
Coughlan, William Webb, Angelo Petrie,
Sampson Jones, Ed Welch, Thomas Larri-
gan, Dominic Mattino. Frank McGourty,
Robert Cottrell. Alex Reno, Frank Simonie,
Robert Steieer, John Jenkins, Dominic
Ozello, Joseph Otino, James Fereee.
Domenie Possettio, Peter Tapiro, Anton
Tapiro, William Haggarty, Andrew Ro-
lando, Peter Maaentio. ,g.f
Work was temporarily stopped abont
noon today for the purpose of flooding the
slopes and chambers OF the mine with air,
and of driving ont, If possible. gas and
Inenacing dangers that remained after yes
terday's explosion. All night shifts of
men, working two hours, were kept EN-.
ployed putting up an air fan in the place of
those destroyed. simultaneously crews of