The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-10-30
AWFUL EXPLOSION
In a Mine of the Lehigh and
Willesbarrc Company.
SIX MINERS KNOWN TO BE DEAD
And Two 1njursd--I'ortunat.iy tho 90 10
800 !ien Usually at Work wero No, In
tho Mine-Tho Work or I,e,cuing tho
Hodies intorferod with-Cau,o OF tho Ae-
ciient Uninown-All or tho Victims
Leave Families.

W1LKEsBARRE, Pa, Oct. GA ter
rlble explosion Of gas occurred in No. . Z
mine OF the Lehlgh and Wilk-sbarre
Coal Company, in South wllkcsbarre,
between and o'clock this afternoon,
Blk men are known TO be dead and two
Injured. II Is not yet known how many
men were In the mlneat the time OF the
explosion, but twelve are reported miss
inE and II Is believed nil Of these have
perlshed. The dead who have been
brought to the surface are.
William X. Jones, fire boss, married,
with family and.
John Joseph, assistant mine foreman,
wife and five children.
Others are known 10 he dead, but who
cannot be reached because OF the mine
damp, are:
Thomas Owens, miner. married and
family.
William Lacey, rock miner. married
and family. !
James Heron, laborcr. married and
family.
Joseph Worth. fire boss married and
family. a Z
The injured. so far as known. are:
David Williams. overcome by black
damp, and Injured In back and side.
John Davis. overcome by black damp.
The cause Of the explosion will poBsi-
bly, never be known. The mine was Idle
for to-day. Usually there are from 100
10 500 men employed in the mine. Had
they all been at work when the explo-
sion occurred The loss OF life would have
been fearful. The only men in the mine
this afternoon were the company hands
and fire bosSea who were AZ work IN the
rock tunnel, changing the air course.
Among those at work in the tunnel
were: 3E
Thomas Owens. William Lacey and
James Worth. The place was very gas
cous and the men worked with safety
lamps. It IS believed the gas was
ignited by blast. David Williams, the
driver boss. was at the dead of the slope,
500 feet away, when the explosion occur
red, and was hurled some distance and
injured. He was the only one In that
vicinity who escaped alive.
The explosion was SO severe that II
wnS plainly felt at the mouth OF the
shaft. The roof OF the fan house was
blown off. and all the air ways and brat
tice inside were wrecked and blown
away. The alarm was promptly given
and hundreds Of men. women and chill
,iren rushed TO the head OF the shaft
husbands, sons or brothers IN the mine
was heartrendinS.
The work OF organizing rescue gangs
was begun without delay. It WAS a
perilOus undertaking MS the sequel
proved. but no man faltered. Fire boss
William r. Jones, and assistant mine
foreman John Joseph selected the men
for the first party and themselves led
the way. All were overcome by the i
zI- 4. 4. 4. n
found driver boss David Williams. All
except Joscphs succeeded in reaching
the foot OF the shaft and were removed 4
TO the surface, but the old fire boss. VIII
liam r Jones, succumbed TO the readily
fire damp and died in half an hour after
being brought out, despite the efforts OF
Doctors Stewart and Petty. who did
their utmost to revive him. John
Joseph. the other hero. became sepa-s
rated from the first party, and the sec
ond rescui1g party found his body and
removed 1t 10 the surface ut $50 o'clock.
\ number of company men who worked !.
IN different part of the mine, reached (
the surface by the No. shaft and also
by another opening. 1t Is not thouGhs
possible to reach the four men in the
rock tunnel until the air currents are e
opened.
Superintendent laval and other off,
clalS of the Lehigh and Wllkesbarre
company were early on the scene and
did all in human power 20 aid the men
below. Large streams Of water were
sent down the shaft 20 establish n tem-
porary air current. while the work OF
rescue was In progress. laval he s.
lieves there may yet be six miners in
side, but an old miner insists there are
twelve. 1t is the general supposltion
that all arc dead. \ rescue Tarty OF Z
twelve men, In charge of Mine Forenoon Z
John ]. Jones. is slowly making way to
the rick tunnel and building an air Z
passage the entire distance to insure
safety The mine damp is very bad and =
the work OF rescue Is progressing at a
great risk. y
On March ., 1870, In this same collisry.
eight men were imprisoned and died be-
fore they could be reached by the rescu-
Ing party.
The bodies OF Thomas Owens, VIII
lam Lacey. James Heron and Joseph
Worth. who were at work in the tun-
mel we're found at . o'clock. They were &
horribly burned and hardly rcSogniE- \
able. The reScuers are now at work
clearing the tunnel in the expectation +
OF finding morc bodies, 53
A Conference or the Powers.
LONDON, Oct. 39.-Thc Rome cores
ponent OF the Chronicle is assured that {
on his return 10 st. Petersburg the car
will propose 4 conference OF the powers
to discuss the Turkish problem