Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-01-28
bear to the grave marks of the awful
Cause of the Accident.

Cause of the Accident.
Theories differ somewhat as to the
cause of the explosion, but the most
generally accepted one is that the
prime cause was what is called a
tight shot, A shot is the term given
TO charge of powder which is put in
to hole drilled into the coal by the
miner. for the purpose of blasting.
sometimes the incautious or inexper-
fenced miner puts too large a charge
OF powder into the hole and sometimes
the unusual solidity of the coal vein
is responsible for the explosion. Just
what the exact reason for the Lost
Greek explosion was will never be
known for no one lives who could ex-
plain it. The Inflated man who fired
the faulty shot is among the dead.
The Explosion.
The explosion was a violent one.
The charge OF powder. instead of
spending its force in the coal as was
intended, forced the tamping back in
TO the room of the mine and spent it's
force In the mine itself. The fame is
supposed to have set on fire the fine
coal dust which is to be found in ev-
cry mine and which burns almost like
powder. The flame sought fresh air
cont1nually, and fed by the coal dust
1t leaped through the entire east half
OF the mine, in which the explosion oc-
Cured, and up the shaft in one burst
of fire. The fire was then all gone,
but it had consumed all the oxygen in
the air, and with the walls destroyed
and the means of ventilation done
away with the miners succumbed to
the awful effects of the "after-damp,'
Or the life destroying gas which was
the only portion of the air remaining
in the mine.
Simultaneous death, and twenty-one men
gave up their lives to this implacable
Toe. Nearly every one of thetwenty-one
was struck by the falling coal and
slate when the walls were blown away
by the terrible explosion, and all were
more or less burned by the terrible
flame that enveloped them moment
after the explosion occurred Thus
| there We're three separate possible
causes for death and it is not to be
wondered at that the list of fatalities
| is so long.
A Heartrending Scene.
In few minutes after the explosion
took place almost every man, woman
and child in Lost Creek was fastening
to shaft No. 2. 1t is located about half
a mile southeast of the village on top
of a hill. AT the top of the shaft the
scene was heartrending. Anxious wo-
men and children became frantic as
| thnu tor 20 I,
The relatives of every one of the 100
men who worked in the mine stood
around the shaft waiting for they
knew not what-they dared not sur
mise the extent of the loss of life
AS soon as it was possible the work
of rescue was begun. Debris blocked
the mouth of the shaft and had to be
cleared away before the bodies could
be recovered. There was some hope
| at first that the men or at least some
of them would be taken out of the
mine alive, but of those who We're far
enough into the works to be cut off
| from the air there was none taken out
with the. semblance OF. life
The work of recovering the bodies
was in charge of Superintendent John
Timbrall, member of the Lost Creek
Fuel Co., which concern owns the mine
and one or two others in the vicinity
Mr.Timbrall gathered together the mi
ners from the surrounding shafts and
relays set to work to clear the way to
! the places where the unfortunate men
were entombed. When word reached
the top that the west side of the mine
was practically not damaged a great
prayer of thanksgiving went up to
| Heaven from many threats, but imme.
| diately came the reflection that many
men were working in the east half OF
the mine, and everyone was in fe
yer of anxious expectancy to learn II
/ his or her loved one was among the
dead or injured, or was sufficiently
| favored by Providence to be on the
opposite side Of the mine from the ex
plosion.
The men at the bottom of the mine
worked like demons, conscious always
that their efforts might possibly save
| the lives of some of the unfortunate
victims of the accident. 1t was at first
| feared that when the pure air was Civ
en- an entrance into the mine the fire
would again start and cut off any pos
sibility of rescue, but as the entrance
was widened and the fire did not re
commence the men gained confidence
and redoubled their efforts to rescue
their companions.
Members of the rescuing party were
continually being overcome by the fou
air which issued from the mine anG
as they fell willing hands seized theil
tools and the work went on without in
terruption. Many were brought from
the mines exhausted and the terror o.
the women and children on the toI
when an insensible man was brought
to the surface was awful, but they
were treasured when it was known
that the insensibility was only tempo
rary. Superintendent Timbrall wa:
among those who were overcome by
the gas and had to be carried to the
open air, but he revived soon and re
turned again to the work in the bot
tom of the mine.
Doctors Summoned.
While the work was going on in tn,
mine the excitement at the top in
creased Women and children wer,
rendered frantic by the suspense
Strong men stood with blanched faces
1 II, EoI irtN