The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1902-01-31
GIANT BLAST KILLS SIX
Dynamite Explodes in New
York Rapid Transit Tunnel.
MILLION DOLLARS DAMAGE DONE
Magnificent Murray Hill Hotel and
! Manhattan Eye and Ear Hospital
Are Wrecked-Debris Flies In All
! Directions.

|
Are Wrecked-Debris Flies In All
Directions.
! New York, Jan. 28.-The reserve
supply Of high explosives stored at
the Park avenue shaft of the Rapid
Transit tunnel now in course OF con.
struction. blew up shortly after noon
yesterday. The giant blast killed
six persons, injured many others and
seriously damaged all the property
reached by the flying debris and the
vibration Of the shock. The irregular
square formed by the Murray Hill
hotel, the Manhattan eye and ear hos.
pital, the Grand Union hotel and the
Grand Central station, was the scene
OF the explosion. The buildings named
sustained the greatest damage, but
the area affected extended for several
blocks in the four directions from
the center
The dead: Roderick j. Robertson.
Cyrus Adams. Ralph Thompson,
Thomas Tubbs, L. Hine, James Carr.
Guest Killed In Murray Hill Hotel.
J. Roderick Robertson of Nelson, B.
c.. was killed by debris hurled with
the force Of artillery into his room at
the Murray Hill hotel. He was gen.
.eral manager in Canada for the British
Columbia Gold Fields company.
The explosion tore a great gorge In
the street, demolished the temporary
buildings and part of the superstruct.
NJ O. hn nf tho oh n nd
q mass Of earth, splintered timber
and twisted iron high in the air
Much of it went battering against the
front of the Murray Hill hotel and
nearly every room in the front Of the
house was wrecked. The Manhattan
hospital Jared nearly as bad and had
to be abandoned. The Grand Union
hotel lost all of its windows and glass
partitions and practically every front
window in the Grand Central station
was shattered. Thousands of windows,
some of them seven blocks from the
tunnel shaft, fell in fragments. 1t
was the shower of broken glass and
falling debris that injured the great.
est number.
II Va IuhoISiy IiiO OApiooioh OSSuii VI
at the noon hour. Not more than 100
persons were in the main waiting
room of the Grand Central station.
Some of these were slightly injured
by bits Of glass. Four ticket sellers
were cut about the heads and arms
with the flying debris.
The clerical force in the executive
offices of the New York, New Haven
and Hartford railroad, which occupy
the floors above the first, in the east
ern wing Of the depot, were thrown
about by the shock. Chief Dispatcher
G. H. Wilson and his four assistants,
who we're directing the trains of the
New Haven lines, having several hun.
dred trains to look out for, were
scratched with flying glass, but did
not leave their chairs even when they
could not see their instruments on &C
count Of smoke.
The station presented somewhat
the appearance of a dismantled castle
with the windows only ragged holes
General alarms brought firemen, po
lice reserves and every available am
bulance to the district. A majority of
the injured were treated on the spot
and the white coated ambulance sur
geons worked for an hour in the debris
strewn streets.
Cause of Explosion.
Moses Epps, powder man In
charge of the shanty in which the ex
plosion occurred, is at the Flower hos
pital, suffering from contusions and
shock. He said that on going to the
shanty about noon, he found candle
which he had left lighted on shell
lying on the floor and some paper
which was about it was on fire. Close
to this burning paper were 13 boxes
of dynamite cartridges. each box con
tanning from 60 to rs cartridges
Epps threw a pail of water over the
fire and ram to get another one. Or
coming back he saw that the flames
were close to the dynamite, and drop
ping his pail he tried to get away
Then came the explosion and the next
he knew he was in the hospital.
Ira A. Shaler engineer in charge Of
the work at Park avenue; Johr
Bracken, a foreman, and Martin Nc
Grath, an assistant foreman, were
arrested, charged with homicide.
The damage may exceed $1,000, 900
The first estimate on the Murray Hill
hotel placed the loss at 100000, but
later the hotel was abandoned as un
safe. II the building is condemned
the loss on it alone will approach
$1,000,O0O. The damage to the Crane
Union was estimated at $4,000 ant
that to the Manhattan hospital at $25,
900. The loss at the Grand Centra
station was entirely in glass. as wal
that of the hundred or more othel
buildings affected by the explosion.
President May Not Accept Present.
Berlin. Jan. 28.-Prince Henry o
Prussia will give a dinner to Andrew
ID. White, United States ambassador
and Mrs. White Jan. 81. 1t appear
uncertain whether President Roose
velt will accept a present from EN-
peror William, owing to the traditiona