The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-07-07

lightning struck the Murray breaker
at Dunmore yesterday afternoon.
KILLED.
JOHN RECULA, married. wife, two sons.
INJURED.
MICHAEL MORRISON, slightly.
JOHN CONWAY, slightly.
JOHN ZELISKI, seriously.
ENGINEER WILLIAM YOUNG, slightly.
John Regula, a laborer at the Muir
ray shaft, at Sport Hill, Dunmore, was
struck by n bolt of lightning and in
stantly killed, while at work in the
tower of the breaker. The same bolt
that caused his death struck the
tower and utterly demolished it and
hurled his body to the ground, to-
gether with the three men who were
working with him.
These latter were Michael Morrison,
John Conway and John Zeliski, and
strange to say only one of them re-
ceived any injuries 20 speak about.
Zeliski fell about ninety feet and re-
ceived serious injuries about the breast.
He was taken to his home on Throop
street. Conway was practically unin-
jured,and Morrison only had a few
slight bruises to show as the result of
the fall. Morrison fell about seventy
feet. landing on the top of small
shanty near the breaker.
TOWER DESTROYED.
The tower of the breaker, with aall
it's betting shafts and other machinery
was entirely destroyed, the timbers
falling to the ground a mass Of scat
tered debris. In the fall, part of the
timbers crushed in the engine house,
and the office and supply shanty were
also badly damaged.
A group of men were sitting in the
shanty and they, too, had q miracu-
lous escape, not one OF them being in
jured. The entire damage to the works
and machinery will probably ibe be-
tween $4,000 and 5000, which is par
| TALLY covered by insurance. 1t will
| take about three months to rebuild
the tower as exceptionally large tim
| bers are used in it which must be es-
| pecially prepared.
This shaft is owned by Anthony and
NJ. j. Murray, John Carney and Mrs.
Brown, all of Dunmore, and employs
about two hundred hands, the shaft
turning out about three hundred tons
of coal a day.
When the storm was In progress yes
terdoy about forty hands were at
work outside the mine, and about one
hundred and fifty in the inner work.
ings. Regula and Zeliski were at
work at the top of the shaft in the
| tower, dumping COAL Morrison su-
perirtending, and John Conway and a
man by the name of Call. at work
nearby.
The rain was coming down in tor
| rents, and every few minutes there
would be a vivid flash of lightning,
| followed by a heavy boom of thunder.
This Murray breaker is evidently a
mark for lightning, standing exposed
and defenceless, and has been struck
three times before.
THE BUILDING SHOOK.
Suddenly the men in the under work.
| ings heard terrific report, the whole
| building shook with a tremendous
shock, and a moment later the tower
of the breaker toppled over and fell to
| the ground, the bodies of four men ac-
companying it. Regula had been struck
dead by the lightning, which, however,
had not touched Conway. Morrison or
| Zeliski
The next moment there was a great
noise, as the carriage, which was being
| hoisted from the shaft, rushed back
again as the tower fell and with 1t the
| wheel on the rope that sustained the
| carriage. There was also a rush OF
| water as the rain poured down through
| the open shaft. The miners scattered
| right and left, and managed to make
their escape through the Spencer mine
and No. / shaft A party of sight
seers, who were making trip through
the mines experienced a great scare,
| but managed TO get out safely.
Engineer William Young was sitting
| in the engine house when the light
ming struck, and so great was the
shock that he was hurled fifteen feet.
When he recovered, he hurriedly shut
off the steam.
Regula's remains were taken to his
| home on Drinker street, and will be