Waterbury Democrat., 1901-12-19
TEN MEN ARE DEAD
Result of an Explosion in the
 Soho Furnace.
TWENTY OTHERS ARE INJURED.

Property. Loss Will Run as High as $2O0O0-Eye Witnesses of the Affair Were Horrifed-When the Explosion
 Occurred the Men Ran Wildly About In an Effort to Escape.
 Pittsburg. Pa, Dec 19-By an eX- plosion of gas in the soho furnace or Jones & Laughlin, this city, this morn ing. ten men were burned to deatn and probably twenty others more or less injured. The damage to the plant will amount to S20,O00.
 The explosion occurred in one of the big blast furnaces. The men were at work at the top of the furnace, over 120 feet from the ground. They were employed as filters and were just get ting ready to quit work. being mem bers of the night crew, when the gas, which accumulated in the furnace, ex- ploded and tons of molten metal, cin- ders and slag were thrown over the unfortunate men on top of the struc- ture.
 When the gas let go a panic ensued on the small platform about the top All the men made a rush for the ele- vator. but it had gone down and there was no escape. To jump meant death. and to remain on the platform was just as certain doom.
 The tons of molten metal and flames fell upon them and burned ten men to death. Their bodies dropped to the roof of the mill. eighty-fiye feet below. The bodies of some of the dead, and many of the injured, were strewn IT. &T1rn nna some of the dead having fallen from the slippery roof to the ground.
 The cries of the injured broke the stiffness which had spread oyer the place when the fury of the explosion and fire had abated. ;, When the dead had been removed, the injured, who were found in all parts of the yard beneath the furnace. were attended to. As rapidly as pos sible they were placed in ambulances and taken to various hospitals.
 The bodies of the victims were all removed to the mOrgue and were terri bly mangled and burned. The identi- fled dead thus far are as follows:
 Joseph Frankoyitch.
 Joseph Sisul.
 Michael Gasdovicz. 25 years of age; leaves a wife and child in Hungary.
 Andrew Sues. % years of age; has a widowed mother in Hungary.
 Michael AIezo, aged 8 years; leaves wife in Hungary.
 Thomas Jones and Arthur Young, managers of the plant. say that nine men were killed and five injured. They say that ordinarily only three men work on top of the furnace, but about 6:15 o'clock this morning one of the heavy iron wagons used in taking up the ore to the top of the furnace got stuck on the top of the structure and the three men sent for assistance. A few men went up, but they could not move the wagon. and more went up until the number reached fourteen. It was while they were trying to get the wagon released that the fatal explosion took place. All the men at work on top of the furnace were Slavs and Poles.
 Nine of them were killed outright and three of the five taken to Mercy hospital are so badly hurt that it is feared they will die
 Eye witnesses of the accident say that it was the most horrible sight they ever witnessed. They say that when the explosion occurred there was one loud report and the heavens were illuminated with a great sheet of flame, showing the men on top of the furnace running about, gesticuIating wildly. The flames and hot metal looked like a volcano in action. Five of the men were blown off the top of the furnace and strangely enough. these men are the ones that are still living. The others hung on the railing, some on the outside. others on the in- side until their clothing was burned off. Two of the victims hanging on the outside clung tenaciously to the railing until their fingers were burned off, Then they dropped to the roof of the mill dead. The bodies of several of the men found on the platform of the cupola were burned almost to a crisp.
 Hundreds of pedestrians on Second avenue had narrow escapes from in- ,tant death when the explosion oc- Surred. Tons of ore coke and hot cin- Hers rained down and many had to run nto houses and stores for protection
 A street car was passing just at the fme the gas let go. The coke and ,ther material falling on the car, which mad twenty-five passengers aboard. caused panic. Many jumped off and more would have followed had not the coolness of the conductor prevented them. None of the passengers was in the least injured but all were badly scared. The report of the explosion aroused the people living in the vicin- ity of the furnace and the place was soon surrounded with an excited throng in which were the wives and families of the dead and injured, together with relatives and friends.