The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-06-03
Conner THOMAS EXPLAINS
The SCOFIELD DISASTER
Tells How the Mine Was Blown Up, But Fails to
Place the Responsibility.
State Inspector Says Black Powder Caused the Explosion
Recommendations Made

Without attaching blame to anyone
specially, and, in fact, without fixing
the responsibility in any manner for
the terrible disaster at the Winter
Quarters mine on May 1, when 199 coal
miners lost their lives and seven 9TH
ers were injured, State Coal Mine In
spector Conner Thomas yesterday re-
ported to Governor Wells what he
terms the nearest ascertainable cause
of the explosion, the results and the
warnings to be needed in the future.
The inspectors official report con-
tains a list of the names of the dead
victims and of the injured ones, re-
ported to him by Assistant Mine Su-
perintendent H. G.. Williams, together
with an opinion from the assistant SUI
perintendent as to the cause of the ex-
plosion which brought such great sor-
row to hundreds of families in Utah
! Inspector Thomas ascribes the cause
of the disaster to the accidental explod-
| ing of a keg of powder the flame from
which ignited the kegs of powder and
/ the explosive coal dust. While he be-
/
under ordinary conditions, he has rec
commended that the coal company keep
| the dust wet. Since the reopening Of
the mine the company has followed the
| inspectors advice. IN the inspectors
report his declaration is cited that no
explosive coal gas exists in the Winter
Quarters mine.
Text of Inspectors Report.
The official report of the state in
spector is as follows:
AT about 1925 on the morning OF
May 1, 1900, an explosion occurred at
the Winter Quarters coal mine, appar-
emily originating in No. 4 mine, by
which according to the latest count
after the most careful checking, l99
men lost their lives and seven were in
! jured. One man came out Of No. I
mine uninjured, and 103 came out OF
No. 1 uninjured. Most of the men IN
No. mine were killed by force and
heat of the explosion. All the men in
the first rise We're suffOcated by after
damp, and more than 100 men in No.
mine were suffOcated by the after
damp which swept down from No.
mine.
No. 1 mine and No. mine are con-
nected, and by reason of such coHnec-
ton both mines suffered a loss by the
one explosion.
1T seems, from all the evidence avail
able, that some person Isaac NackD
accidentally ignited a key of powder
which caused the dust to rise, thus kg-
hitting the dust and carrying the
flames from room to room from point
known as Pixies Peak, and the tmme
date vicinity thereof. / find that nine
kegs of powder were exploded near
this place. Fourteen kegs of black pow
der exploded in other parts of the mine,
making a total of twenty-fOur kegs of
black powder exploded. thus adding
great force to the explosion.
How the Miners Died.
Along the line where the powder
exploded all the bodies were badly
burned, more so than in any other part
of the mine. From this place the blast
shot down along the main and main
back entries and through all
the rooms and entries of No.
4 mine, gathering all the
cOmbustibles, such as dust. powder,
etc. within reach. Part of the blast
shot out to the surface, through No.
mine tunnel and air shaft and part
went through No. 1 mine. The part
of the blast that went into No. 1 mine
soon lost its force. the heat only reach
ing as far down as room No. IL, fourth
rise and room No. on the sixth rise,
but did not reach the eighth rise.
There were sixty men smothered by
after damp. These men were found
between the seventh and eighth rises.
They were not burned and were only a
short distance from fresh air.
Many Could Have Saved Themselves
"All the men working below the
fourth level Of the eighth rise entries
escaped and scarcely felt the shock
Only two men, working above this
point, came out alive. They were Da-
vid Uro and one other, and were res
cued three and one-half hours after the
explosion occurred. Uro, was working
in room No. II of the eighth rise. He
remained in his room, not knowing an
explosion had occurred, and there be-
ing sufficient air in his place his life
was saved. All the other men on this
level hearing the explosion ran, trying
to make their escape, and encountered
the after damp, to which they sue
cumbed. I am of the opinion that had
they remained in their working places,
or if they had gone down the eighth
rise entry, many of them would have
been saved.
The mine foreman having been kill
ed and all those who were acquainted
with the location of the places where
the men in No. 4 mine were working,
having been killed. made it difficult to
rescue the men, as many places had
caved and buried them up, and also
made it difficult to gain information as
to the cause of the explosion.
No Explosive Gas In Mine.
"At no time has there been known
to exist in any of the Winter Quarters
mines. any explosive gases, before or
since the explosion, were the same as
have been in existence for the past
twenty years in the Winter Quarters
mines Nos. l. 2, 8 and 4. These mines
are all on the same vein of coal.
In the year 1899 4, 400 kegs of black
powder were used in mining coal in the
Winter Quarters mines. It has always
been practice for each miner to take
his powder into the mine by the key.
Not alone in these mines has this been
the practice, but in nearly all of the
mines of the different states. and this
has been done regardless of dust or
other surrounding dangers.
1T is my opinion that the dust in the
Winter Quarters mine is not of a. very
explosive nature, as we find that there
have been hundreds of windy or blown
out shots in the mines. with no serious
result heretofore. In one case John D.
Jones accidentally exploded three-uuar-
tiers of a key of black powder. and the
dust did not ignite. This was in mine
No. 3, which mine developed as much
dust as the one that exploded. It is
connected with No. 4, being a continual
ton of the same seam Of coal.
For the safety of the miners in the