The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-03-23
IHlEE1Vl)RklIENKILLlD
~ Exploding smokeless Powder at
Dupont's Pennsgrove Works.
SHOCK FELT FOR MILES AROUND.


The Cause OF tho Accident, Which
4 Originated In One of the Drying
Rooms, Has Not Been Determined.
Two Of the Dead Leave Families.
Pennsgrove, N. j., March 23;-Oycr
8.O0O pounds of smokelcss powder ex-
plOded yesterday at the Il. l. Dupont
/ powder works at Carney's Point, near
here, and opposite Wilmington. Del,
Instantly killing three wOrkmen and in
4 curing a number Of others slightly. The
dead are: Isaac Layton, aged 80, mar
. ried: William Ford, aged 40, married,
!. and John Magill, aged 30, single. The
bodies OF the dead were blackened and
Ais6yured by the explosion.
s-s The cause of the accident has not been
,letermined, hut it originated in one of
F'tke drying houses, where Layton was
1t work. about l o'clock. The shock
:. from this explosion shook the country
for miles around, and in this town heavy
4 panes of glass were broken in many
houses. Across the Delaware river, in
Wilmington, the noise of the explosion
was also heard. immediately following
the first explosion came several Other
distinct and nearly as loud explosions,
In small storehouses. Both the dryin.,
house and the storehouses We're demol-
ished, and other small buildings about
the works were damaged. Francis Il.
Dupont and his nephew were at work in
the laboratory Mt the time of the explo-
sion and were slightly injured by pieces
Of glass, but personally directed the care
Of other injured and the recovery of the
dead.
Layton and Ford were old employees
q the company and Magil had been
working but short time.
z, The works has been running on large
Il government orders for smokeless pow
der. .-.
HIS The Ice plant was next destroyed Ford
was killed in this building The last.ex-
.plDslon vas In the ralr Of thirty calibre
buildings," nanr Of which were torn t.,
atofns. Among these wete fiji cen mixing
houses two composition houses q dry
house and one other small building.
In ono Of the structures in the "thirty
oAlibre row. were stored four tons of
smokeless powder The building was
completely wrecked, but the rows of nice
iy filled boxes con, ainiDg the explosive are
standing intact. The sides and roof Of the
building were blowr out.
WORSE THAN A CYCLONE.
The scene is u horrible one. A cycl one
could not have sedgreatcr havoc. There
wore about hundred buildings, aud al! OF
these are wrecked in some way, some be-
.spattered with blood from the employees
either killed or wounded.
1ha in n N AMI tha n rnnt
esb excitement prevails. The borough
buildings have been turned into largo
hospital While no roi-ca!l has been made
of the 300 employees, lhere AFRO several men
missing, but it is not known whether they
arc dead or have gone 10 their homes,
many living at the nearby towns Char
les Higgins cannot bs accounted for to-
night
4 The explosion occurred while many were
eating dinner and the conclusions were
heavy enough to cause people to fall TO
tho ground Or We're thrown from their
chairs. Windows and chimreys wese
shattered aud tableware was knocked
from closets in many homes.
PANIC IN THE TOWN.
People rushed from their homes and tho
streets were soon filled wi Ii ihrongs Wo-
mon tainted, and when the first announces
ment came that there were fifteen killed
cd around in Il franic way trying to learn
whether their sons were killed or wound
eld tho sight was u terrible oDc. 1t was
fifteen minutes before any message could
b obi lined from the works, as there are
no wire connections, and many rode down
no one was allowed within IL mile Oh the
sc8nC. --,
This first that was known of any of the
deRu was when u nephew OF Layton was
walking about the works he discovered u
part of face and recognized it us his uncle.
Then he picked up about bucket of flesh
an arm here a foot there, and did not
know whether these belonged to Layton
or not
When Ford was found largo cash was
in his head. Mctiill was seen To walk away
and then fail. Heha,l u large cut in his
hoad an arm partly blown of and his flesh
hung in strips.
wORKMAN'S PRESENCE or MIND.
Alter the first explosion II workman
banned Leonard had the presence of mind
to run and turn II value aud shut off all
the cow of the ether and probably saved
many lives including his own.
Charles Munyan, a mixer was blown
nbont fifty yards into an adjoining lsld
hut aside from being bruised was unin-
juted
AS soon as possible after the accident n
boy WAS sent from tho works to summon
all the physicians OF the town, and Drs
Rarnhart, Croft, Summerill and Garrison
were soon among the wounded,
When it was learned that some had been
killed Coroner Torton was called. Tho
exact list Of the mi urcd cannot be obtained
before to morrow.
Tie MeSsrs. DUPONT who were injured
Wero in the labratory AT the time Of tho
hociLcnt.
MONEY LOSS $500 OOo.
Every building on the grounds ia either
completely demolished or moved from its
foundation In such u way that an entire
new plant will have to BIZ erected. Tho loss
Is placed at q half u million dollars mud it
- doubtful if this amount will cover it..
The plant was among those that were
carefully guarded du . tho Spanish war
by q regiment OF sol. :. 1t Is situated
about three miles fl I'll this place aud
covers about hundred ocres OF ground.
The cause of the explosion is unknown
One story is that powder case came in
contact with radiator. Another SUPPOSE
ton is that he explosion originated III the
ice house whore there were many acids
The three shocks OF the exploding pow
der were plainly felt in this city and it
was first thought that tho powder mills
near this city had exploded. Telephone
Inquiries were made and it was found
that there had been no explosion there,
then it was thought that the shock had
been caused by the blasting OF rock in the
Chrisiianu river. This was found to be !.
wrong theory, and then many we're of the
opinion that there had bcon an cart houake
inquiry aioug the river brought tho iu-
formation that the explosion had occurred
at the Carney Point powder works, but
on account OF the heavy fog which hung
over the river at the time, it WAS impos,
sibe to see whether the explosion had
b,an in that direction.
The shock was one Of the heaviest felt
in this city since the recent explosion AT
the works in this city. Dishes were ratified
and windows and doors shaken In al
parts Of Wilmington.
Tho shocks were also felt in Philadel
phsa, and uumerou, telephone inquiries
were sent to Wilmington asking If The
powder mills here had exploded No in,
formation could be obtained at the time
ana 1t was not in;il tbs boat from pcnns
grove arrived Ii night that the detail.
could DO learnJr Tie shock in point,
along the New I,r.oy shogc was much