The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-08-18
A TERRIFIC EXPLOSION.
BURNING OF A LARGE GRAIN ELEVA-
TOR IN CHICAGO.

Great Havoc WrouSht-Four Persons Kill
cd and Over score, More or Less Severe
Iajured- F.igh:ful Fcrce OF the Ex-
p'o,,on- Fury of III F.Smcs.
Four lives we're lost in an explosion
which took place Thursday evening
during Ere IN the Northwestern grain
elevator at Geek aud West Water
streets, Chicago. Three OF the dead
are fi;encn, the bCdy CT another tiTe-
mar is thought to be buli d in the
ruins Of the elevator. From the
force with which the explosion swept
the spot on which they were standing
It is cartain that they must have been
instantly killed. Either The bursting
of boiler or the explosion OF mill
dust caused the havoc. The three
fremen who were killed by the falling
walls OF the elevator were Jacob }.
Schur. John 8. Cocgsn and Jacob S.
Stramer.
The injured ere: Charles H. Con.
way, fireman, burned about face and
hands and body crushed, may die;
Chief Dennis Sweeney, right foot
crushed, left arm wrenched and pain
fully burned; Fire Marshal Campion,
burned about face; Lieut.. Smith, both
legs crushed: Lieut.. w. H. Bartlett,
leg crushed; Assistant Engineer Ben
isnin Blanchard, badly bruised; John
+. Smith, injured by debris; William
Mcclure, Is years old, both feet
crushed; Thomas Engle, pipeman,
cut about hands and internally in
jured; Ignatius Bond, cut by falling
glass; Captain John j. Evans, struck
by debris and rendred unconscious,
serious; William Hanley, pipemsn,
cut in head William Thompson, hit
by falling glass; @. +. Walter, knock
ed down by explosion and injured
about the spine; John Hentz, struck
by falling beam and skull fractured ;
James Mcclure, leg fractured; Joseph
Lacey, badly burned about face, case
serious; Frank Q. Hally, face burned
beyond recognition, may lose sight !;
Lieut.. G.. Miller, compound fracture
of leg badly burned, condition crlti'
cal; Capt. William Cooney, badly
burned about face, may lose sight of
both eyes, condition serious; John
Evans, fracture of right arm, badly
burned about the face. In all 81 fire
men were injured.
Besides these, dozens of firemen and
passers-by were more or less cut and
bruised by glass and flying debris.
The origin of the blaze is believed to
have been in the vicinity of the boiler
house. Accumulated dust, as dry and
infammable as gunpowder, that had
been piling up for years, formed a
ready means for the fire. It spread
with great rapidity, and then came a
terrible explosion, completing the
work of scattering the fire throughout
the entire structure.
Just as The tiremen were. getting
into position for advantageous work,
and nearly all the members of engine
company 3 were mounting ladders and
bringing leads of hoes to play on the
interior from the supper windows,
there came a roar that could be heard
for half mile. The roof was raised
high into the air, and the walls came
down with a crash. The forcs Of the
explosion was so great that the eastern
wall was hurled into the river, the
west wall was tumbled down upon
the heads of the unfortunate men be-
low and the roof was torn into frag
ments and distributed for blocks
around.
Every window in the vicinity of the
elevator was shattered by the concu:.
sion D:z9ns Of persons were struck
by Il ing deb,is and several small
fires started from falling timbers that
we're still in flmes. At Jefferson
sheot and Carroll avenue, many
blocks distant. great burning masscs
of wreckage fell upon four wagons
loaded with hay ard set them on f"e.
TIE elevator was Of composite con.
struction, the lower portion being Of
brick and the upper part o! frame GOV.
cred with corrugated iron, The ex.
p!osion caused perfect bom5ardnect
OF flying bricks and sheets OF iron at
almost white heat, leaving little otthe
building save a frame work OF wood
and iron surrounding a great pile of
blazing wheat.
The explosion stunned. for mo-
ment, the police and the fremen, but
they quickly rallied to help those who
had been hurt. Dozens of men lay
injured in the whitening heat, some
not seriously harmed and others in
the throes of death. 1t was dangerous
work to get them out, but it was gal.
lantly and quickly done, and all OF
the slightly injured were removed.
The dead were, for the time, left
where they lay. No man could reach
their bodies and live.
The fire was most difficult to con-
troll, as the elevator was surrounded
by a number of small buildings which
were continually catching fire.
The total loss is estimated at SO, 900,
600 which is fully covered by insur'
ance.
A Great Volcano.
l.