Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1897-11-05
4 TERRIBLE EXPLOSION
BROAD RIPPLE. AN INDIANAPOLIS
SUBURB, SUFFERS.
Six Citizens Dead, Thirty More Dam
gerously Injured by Gas
ExpI0sf0n.

indianapolis, Sept. 6.-Broad Ripple,
suburb CT indianapolis, 10 miles from
the city proper, was Saturday morning
the scene of the most terrible disaster
that ever visited the state. Six persons
were burned to death and 80 people are
lying in the homes OF neighbors, burned,
Scared and racked with pain. Four
buildings, occupying block of the town,
are in ruins. Of the six dead, nothing
but charred and blackened bones, with
hanging strips of foul-smelling flesh re-
manned.
AT 10 o'clock a foul odor was noticed
IN the drug store of j. M. Watts, and a
lamp in dark room used for amateur
photography went out. 1t was lighted
and as the burning match was thrown
to the floor streaks of flame of BLUSH
tint ran along the joist between the
boards, showing the presence of escaping
natural gas, and then up went the walls.
The next instant the explosion came.
The walls were hurled in every direction
and the top of the building fell with
crunching, grinding sound, covering ev-
erything. Fire broke out and shrieks
could be heard from those buried be-
meath. Of seven persons in the store
three were burned alive. The rest are
still alive and may recover.
A hundred persons were at work on
the ruins trying to save Gresch's gro
Gerry adjoining, pulling at the ruins to
h,rp
engaged, and 20 minutes after the first
explosion, a second came from beneath
the grocery. 1t was a mighty roar and
hurled the building to atoms. Forty peo-
pie were knocked senseless, were strewn
in all directions with broken bones and
burned bodies. while as many more es-
ceped with small injuries. The shock
made the whole town culver. Beneath
these ruins Pious Gresch. the grocery
man, was caught and crushed to DEATH
His body was recovered before it was
entirely burned. The ruins were added
to those of the building adjoining, de-
molished by the first explosion, and the
whole mass, together with an adjoining
frame cottage and livery stable, was
burned to ashes, only the bucket brigade
being on hand in time to do any good,
and probably only prolonged the agony
of the victims who were burned.
The disaster was caused by natural
gas leaking into the cellars of the build
ing from three-inch main that ran into
the street and from which the houses
were supplied. The list of dead and in
jured is as follows:
Dead-Jacob Yount, indianapolis;
Jacob Darling, painter, Broad Ripple;
Pious Gresch, groceryman, Broad Ripple;
Henry Ernst, laborer, Broad Ripple;
John Porter, farmer, near Broad Ripple;
Albert IIayworth, truckster, Westfeld.
Seriously injured Edward Watts, bad
| ly burned about the hands. face and
body; Edward Morris, shoulder dislo-
Gated, compound fracture of the right
arm, seriously burned; Joseph Wam-
baugh, badly cut above the eye, burned
and cut by glass in number of places;
Orville Heady, left knee cap fractured
and leg broken in two places below the
knee; Charles Jones, cut in face and all
over the body by flying glass; j. B.
Watts, extent of injuries unknown;
Thomas Jones. bad cut on temple and
bruises on body; Samuel Kelso, shot a
number of times by exploding shotgun
shells; Thomas Mitchell, left leg broken
Jacob Cruz, caught under piece of flying
timber, internally injured; Harvey Du
gan, shoulder pierced by broken frag
ment; John Doaks, back injured serious
ly (all the above named injured are resi-
dents of Broad Ripple; Clare Whitaker
Oakland, Ind, ankle broken; Frank d
Norville, Indianapolis, fingers torn of
and arm cut.