Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1900-05-10
'o0er Oh Deaths Caused by Explosion Now Placed at One
Hundred and Ninety>nine
~ he Explosion Still Matter
|soseo oy dynamite in the Hands
ana orphans beins Rised-ofeid Statement Issued by tn.
Pleasant Valley Company

The worst mine disaster ever re.
corded In America occurred at tunnel
40. OF the Pleasant Valley Coal com.
panys mines at Scofield Utah, at l0:45
a. m., May l. The bodies of at least
! 1913 persons have been recovered and II
is admitted that four yet remain TO be
accounted for.
The number OF killed and niured is
matter of dispute.
Mr.. Sharp, superintendent of the
mine, says there were 800 men at the
mine in tunnels Nos. ] and at the
time OF the explosion, and of this num-
per about 100 are accounted for among
the living and injured. However. there
Is great variance between the figures
given by Mr.. Sharp and those given by
Bishop Parmley. mine superintendent.
the third in authority. The latter
places the number of men at work in
the mine at not less than 800. which
would indicate that somewhere in the
mine a number of bodies are buried in
debris
Nine-tcnths of the men killed are
Americans and Welsh. The former
come mostly from Utah, with small
numb Der from Tennessee and Colorado.
In several families every male member
is numbered with the dead
AS soon as the explosion became
known a
but could not enter the mine for at
least an hour on account of fire damp
They first tried to enter tunnel No. /.
but were driven back. They then tried
No. 4. where they found the air begin.
ming to circulate, and after clearing
away the fallen and dead horses at the
mouth of the mine they entered about
two hundred yards when they came
upon the dead bodies Of six of the men.
From that time on bodies were en-
countered in all parts of the mine in
profusion, and were brought out 80
rapidly AS to make it difficult to main
tain correct count. At first hopes
were entertained that great
many of the miners would be
found alive if they could be reached
quickly. With this idea in view rescue
work was prosecuted with great vigor.
but with a total lack of system. Peo-
pie ran here, there and everywhere, in
the hope of saving some friend or rela-
tive, and while boring under this ex-
citement things became SO chaotic as
to defy untanglement. Following the
first excitement came a stupor-a sense
of being overwhelmed which lasted for
several days, from which it seemed inn
possible to arouse many, to make them
of any assistance in establishing order. |
of the bodies recovered, nearly all |
were in good condition. few were
horribly burned and blackened by the
flames at the time of the explosion,
fro being blown
against the solid walls. The great
portion of deaths resulted from fire
damp, however a poison generated by
the explosion-that renders one un-
as soon as breath is
This death-deaiing fire damp did
not extend to all parts Of the mine, as
Is evidenced by the finding of six live
horses in tunnel No. ! three days after
The explosion Not having the intel
igenee to scent danger, they did not,
ike their keepers, endeayor to escape
,nly TO run into and succumb to the
poisonous fumes. How many men
,hus ran into the arms of death will
lever be known, but it is presumed to
De many
OF those in No. 4, where the explo-
ion occurred, there was no chance to
,scape. The explosion was so terrific
hat nothing could live. Horses were
blown against the walls and killed,
md one man, driver, was blown out
If the mouth af the mine and across
he canyon a distance of 500 feet,
picked up alive and will recover. This
Incident, which is one of many, gives
n idea of the immeasurabie power re-
eased which created such sad havoc
The cause of the disaster, it is ad-
nitted, was the ignition of coal dust.
low this occurred, however, is and
lways will be a matter of conjecture, !
or there are no witnesses. All whc
we're near enough to have furnished ,
ny enlightenment were blotted out of
xistence instantly. 1t is thought