The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-06-12
NO HOPE FOR MINERS
FORT ROYAL MINES HORROR
GROWS DARKER.
THE REsCUERS ALSO LOST.
COUSIN OF MCKINLEY AMONG THE:
MISSING.

ueIieved That Not One of the Seven
teen Entombed Men Is still Alive.
Inspection Party, Which Entered
The Mime Yesterday, Had "A Very
Narrow Escape and Several Were
dangerously Hurt-Of the First
searching Party which Went
Down Nothing Has Been Henrd and
of the Second Party Only Two Es-
capped.
West Newton. Pa, June n.-Not prac-
-f,,l miner in this district believes that
one of the seventeen men entOmbed in
the Port Royal mines by the explosion
last night. is still alive. There is no fire
il. the mine. to judge from appearances
81. the pit mouth, but the force of the
,suloson was so great that none of the
men, so the miners say, could have sur
yyed the shock. The complete list of
HE dead includes:
Wiiiiam McCuhe. superintendent, mar
1ted. four children.
John Heck mine boss, married, three
children.
William Allison superintendent, West
Newton, married, four children.
Daniel Alsop, mine boss, and thirteen
miners.
William McCune was superintendent of
the Port Royal district, comprising five
mines. He was a large stakeholder in
the Pittsburg Coal Company. and his
family lived in a handsome residence on
Vine street, West Newton. William ALI
SON was Z. second cousin of President
William Mckinley.
Early thds morning Harry Beverage
and two miners, three of a rescuing par
ty that went to the mine. to bring out
their mates who were entombed were
sent to the McKeesport Hospital. Bev-
eridge had both hands broken and the
other TWO We're badly burned.
Rcscuers Have Narrow Escape.
At 9:4 a m. to-day an inspection par
ty went into the mine through the shaft
on the Baltimore and Ohio side of the
Youghiegheny river. 1t was their pur-
pose to penetrate as far as possible to
locate the dead bodies with hardly hope
q finding any one alive.
The rescue party had been in the mine
about an hour when the mufiled report of
4 another explosion was heard issuing from
the depths of the shaft and a rush for
the cage was made by the men above
who thought that these rescuers had met
the fate OF those who had gone before.
a dozen men volunteered to go down and
1ry and rescue the party, but their SER
vices were not required as the signal to
hoist the cage was given from the bot
tom and when it reached the top three
II unconscious forms were found lying on it
Fire Inspector Callaghan and Fire Boss
w McFee. of the Wickhaven mines were
the most dangerously hurt of the party,
and these mep were taken to the hotel
/ near by, where two physicians worked
A V.-l them almost an hour before they
H could be brought back to life. This last
explosion in the minds of many seems to
settle the fate of the entombed men and
all hope Of getting any of them out alive
4 has been abandoned.
story of the Disaster.
h The disaster occurred about 6 O'Clock
A last evening. An explosion was heard by
4 men at shaft No. and suddenly cloud
/ Of smoke burst from the mouth OF the
shaft
searching party composed of Supt.
4 William McCune and nine others went
4 down shaft No. @ Nothing was heard
o. them. and in an hour another rescuing
4 fo.r. headed by James Bailey and Will
/ nam Williams, fire bosses, went down the
/ saott They had CROPPED their way about
20 feet, when two explosions were heard
| in rapid succession. The shaft lamps in
the hands OF Bailey and Williams were
blown fifty feet away, and they them
selves were thrown violently to the
ground They arose to their feet and
called for their comrades, but there was
| 10 answer. Both men hurried back to
the shaft and were taken up in the cage.
1 From that moment until 9q a. m. not
i another soul went down the shaft, as it
4 would have meant certain death from the
after damp.
The party that went in this morning
was d1mposed of Mine Inspector Bernard
callahan, General Superintendent John
Reese, Fire Boss William McRee, Fire
Boss Daniel Mccullough. Fire Boss Peter
Il Aclindon and Pit Boss Robert Mckinney
All but Callahan were brought from the
various mines of the Pittsburg Coal Com
plny
Was Always Dangerous.
The Port Royal mine has always been
\ considered dangerous. There was a sim
!iar explosion in the mine seven years ago
n Dy Which one man was killed.
Inc use of safety lamps has been made
II ATJ1sET 7eT----sgs, II