The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-08-09
MANY DEADOR INJURED
FIVE BUILDINGS WRECKED BY
A TERRIFIC EXPLOSION AT
PHILADELPHIA.
WAS CAUSED BY GASOLINE

NAS OAUSEU BY UASULlNE
Ruins Catch on Fire and Add to the
Horror-FIames Are Quickly Extin-
euished and the Work of Rescue
Begun-Over Two Score in the Hos
pitfalls and Half as Many Probably
Killed.
Philadelphia, Aug. Ga terrific ex-
plosion in a block of six buildings on
Locust street above Tenth complete
ly wrecked five of the structures anG
caused the death of from 10 to 20 or
more persons. Over two score Of 9th
ers were more or less seriously in
3ured. Some of those taken to the
hospital will die. II is estimated that
ut least 35 persons were in the five
buildings when the explosion occurred
and the exact number of dead will
probably not be known for "a hours.
The upper floors of the buildings
were all occupied as living quarters.
No. 1910 Locust street was Rosen-
IhaPs second hand clothing store. His
family consisted of himself, wife and
1--WE children. No. 1912 was Jones'
restaurant, patronized principally by
eolored people. In this building it is
estimated there were Is persons. No.
1O14, McClemmy's grocery store, esti-
mated three persons. No. 1915, Quig-
ley's grocery. The family consisted
Of husband, wife, three children and
IN uncle. No. 1918, Mounten's gro
Gerry, estimated four persons. How
many members of the families men.
toned were in the houses at the time
cannot be told. Neither can 1t be
said how many customers were in the
stores The sidewalks at the time
were crowded with passersby and
ioungers and few had opportunity to
escape falling walls or the shock of
the explosion.
Believed to Have Been Gasoline
What exploded and how it happened
is not known at this time, but it is be-
Heved to have been barrel of gaso-
line in one of the three grocery
stores. With the explosion the front
walls of the buildings were blown out
ward into the street, while the floors
and the roofs were blown upward and
fell straight to the ground. Every
building on the opposite side of Lo-
Gust street was more or less wrecked,
but none of them fell.
A terrible cry went up from the
ruins the moment the explosion oc-
CURED. Women, children and men,
occupants of the wrecked houses,
could be seen crawling from the de-
bris, while the agonizing cries of 9TH
ers were heard in the wreckage. From
all the surrounding buildings the in
jured people came running and fell
into the street unconscious. To add
to the horror fire broke out in the de-
bris the moment it settled to the
ground and in less than five minutes
the great pile was burning fiercely
from end to end. A general alarm
was turned in for fire apparatus and
ambulances and in the meantime the
work Of rescue was voluntarily be-
gun by those in the neighborhood who
were not injured.
Here and there person was
dragged from the ruins before the fire
could reach the victim, several lives
being saved by this prompt work.
When the firemen reached the scene
the flames
Had Reached Great Roadway
and were igniting the buildings across
the street. The fire, however, was
soon under control and with the ex-
ception of a small blaze here and
there it was extinguished in few
minutes.
The work Of digging away the ruins
was then begun in earnest. While
the firemen and policemen were dig
cling in the debris and hauling away
heavy timbers in several sections of
the wreckage cries were heard COM
ing from the cellar of Mountains
grocery store. Fifty men, with rope
and tackle, were Immediately put to
work at that point and pulled away
the roofing and flooring which had
fallen into a massed heap. From the
bottom of the pile, doubled up, were
taken a man and woman. The man
was able to speak, but the woman was
apparently dead.
While the work Of rescue was 60
ing on in the exploded block hospital
attendants and others made search
of all the damaged houses on the op-
posite side of the street and almost
score of persons were taken to Vari-
Gus hospitals from these places.
The only known deaths are col
ored woman and colored child at
the hospitals and colored man whose
body was taken from the ruins: Many
Of those at the hospitals are not ex-
pected to live and many are reported
missing.