The sun., 1898-12-10
RUNAWAY CAUSED ACCIDENT

Car ana ACClOenC EnSutu.
The Explosion Felt
for Miles.
A press room and six grinding rooms
exploded at 1000 o'clock yesterday
at the du Pont powder works
IN the Brandywine, killing three men
outright, severely injuring three more
md slightly wounding several other en-
ployes.
Robert McIlhenney, 45 years OF age.
Banks, body torn to rag
ments. He leaves q wife. who Is an
Invalid, and five children.
John Wright, aged 40 years, mar
ried, no children, lived at Forty Acres.
head and legs missing, trunk OF the
body and one foot found.
John Moore, of the Highlands, about
As years of age, leaves a wife and five
children. Body but slightly mu'
tiliated.
SERIOUSLY INJURED.
Thomas McCue. aged 81 years, of His
ing Sun. badly burned and not ex.
pected to live.
John MuIhern, aged Al years, driver
of the powder car, Dupont's Banks,
seriously burned, has q wife and two
children. Not expected to recover.
Thomas Knox, aged 45 years, or
Walkers Banks, seriously burned,
has a wife and three children. NOT
expected to recover.
Samuel Stewart, aged 40 years, Du-
nont's Banks. probably fatally hurt.
was on the powder car when explO-
sion occurred. The injured man has
a wife and three children. He was
taken to the Delaware Hospital.
There we're several other employees
slightly injured, among them being John
Stewart and Michael Maloney.
&All that has been secured OF NC
Ilhenney's body is one foot and about
bucketful of fragments. The deceased
was one OF the most popular dwellers o.
the Banks. He was interested in church
work, being hard working man and
good Christian. His wife, who is an in
valid, is in a serious condition, being
completely prostrated by the shock o
her husbands sudden and horrible
death.
The grief of the other dead powder
makers' widows and families is pitiablt
to see.
The explosion, it is alleged was caused
bv the undue haste OF grocer samue
Frizzle trying to get around ahead OF th'
powder car to which was attached TIVE
powerful and nervous horses.
The grocer's wagon, it is said, came 81
near the powder car team that the'
swerved to one side upsetting the ca
which contained about $500 pounds o
black rifle powder.
The powder at once took fire from tn
friction of the car wheels and communl
eating with the interior OF the press
room caused the disaster.
Mr.. Frizzle denies this and claims tha
his horse became frightened at the ca
and becoming unmanagable dashed il
front of the powder car horses and the
in turn becoming frightened started tt
run and upset the car causing the ex
plosion.
Mr.. Fizzle had a narrow escape iron
being blown to atoms. His hat wa
blown from his head and his horse wa
thrown down by the force Of the con
cussiOn.
Many houses in the vicinity Of the eS
plosion were more or less wrecked
sashes being blown in, and in some case
the houses were slightly moved fror
their foundations.
The amount of powder that went u
in smoke is estimated by Mr.. dupont t
be about 5000 pounds.
This is the first serious explosion sine
October 7, 1890, when twelve men los
their lives. In 1892 small eXploslo
took place, by which Edward Gallaghe
! lost his life.
Father Birmingham, OF St. Joseph
Church, was early on the scene OF tt
!. disaster and administered the last rites
tie church to Thomas McCann and Joh
Mulhern.
The press room. where the main e!
plos;on occurred, is located about tt
centre of Hagley yards, and is used IL
! pressing the powder into blocks before
is cut into the required size for the ma
ket. All of the powder that blew up
! of an ordinary black type, such as
= = used for blasting. ,
The workmen employed at the mil
were completely dazed for hours att
the explosion, and scarcely knew VIII
> they were doing. Michael Malone,
Z. employed in the blacksmith shop at tt
works, was cut upon the head BY ii
= falling of a window, caused by the lor'
: Of the explosion. :.
= The explosions were followed by i
y tense excitement in the villages su
. rounding the mills, and their reslden
. hastened to the gates of the powd
. . yards to get what information they cou
. concerning members of their iamlll
. who were employed there.
Many of the early comers obtained a
mission to the yards and were able
y observe the dire results of the eXpIoslo
Some time later the yards were clear!
of all except those connected with IL
!. works or physicians and clergyme,
. Among the physicians early on IL
;, scene were: Drs. Joseph II. Chandle
~ John Palmer, Jr., Swithin Chandle
= = j. L France, II. p. Greenleaf and Jam
~ II. Morgan.
- The wounded were temporarily car
= for in the yard. Max Mahoney al
y Samuel Stewart were sent to the Del
= aware Hospital.
: The shock shook his'city to its fou
= dations.
I'm m.nediateiy after the reports hu