The Savannah morning news., 1902-01-28

New York, Jan. 27.-The reserve sup
nly of high explosives stored at the
Park Avenue shaft of the Rapid Tran
sit tunnel, now in course of construc-
tion. blew up shortly after noon to-day
The giant blast killed six persons, in
hred hundred others and seriously
damaged all the property reached by
the flying debris and the vibration OF
the shock.
The killed were:
Adams, Cyrus, a cigar man at the
Murray Hill hotel.
Carr, James, 80 years, a waiter en-
ployed at the Murray hotel.
Helm, -, 2S years, of Ansonia, Conn.
Roderick, j., of Nelson, B. c., a guest
at the Murray Hill hotel.
Thomas, John H., assistant engineer
(AI outside reports seem to agree as to
his death, but his body is not reported
by the police, or by hospitals.)
Tubbs. William Cor Charles), Master
Mechanic for Contractor Ira A. Shaler
The irregular square formed by the
Murray Hill hotel on the west, the
Manhattan Eye and Ear hospital and
the Grand Union hotelon the east, ano
the Grand Central railroad station or
the north, was the scene Of the explo-
sion. The buildings named sustained
the greatest damage, but the area af-
fected extended for several blocks in
the four directions from the center.
j. R. Roberts of Nelson, B. c., was
killed by debris thrown with the force
of artillery into his room at the Muir
ray Hill Hotel. He was general man
ager in Canada for the British Colum.
bia Gold Fields Company, Limited
and prominent citizen in the sommu'
nifty where he lived. He was Scotch
man and left a widow and four chill
tren. He was said to have been quite
wealthy?
The sunken approaches to the stree
railway tunnel used by the Madison
Avenue Line cuts through Park ave
nue., and the shaft for the rapid transit
subway was run down beside it at the
Intersection of East Forty-first street
The street railway approach wa'
housed over with superstructurt
used for the operating plant of thu
rapid transit contractors. Temporary
buildings for storage purposes wer'
thrown up against the superstructur'
nf ho nd
the explosion occurred. 1t tore
great gorge in the street, demolished
uhe temporary buildings and part o
the superstructure, and sent a mas
IRON high in the air. Much of thi
went battering against the front o
tne Murray Hill Hotel, and, although
.he walls and main structure of tha
puIldlng stood the shock, nearly ever,
Ioo'n IN the front of the house wa
me Manhattan Eye and Ear Hospita
on lne east side OF the avenue farce
nearly as bad and had to be abandon
~ Wy lne management. The Crane
oHion Hotel lost all of it's window
ahu glass partitions, and practically ev
tly, 'front.' window in the Grand Cen
iLaal station was shattered. The grea
ms on its front towers were blow
I'm their cases. Thousands OF win
ttIo"s some of them seven blocks iron
tunnel shaft, fell in fragments. l
saS the shower of broken glass AM
rr1illllg debris that injured the creates
General alarms brought firemen, 20
~ reserves and every available am
tSuiance to the district, and the in
Uu 3or,,l We're speedily cared for. A ma
~ OF the injured were treated o.
Ia Ie spot and the white-coated ambu
~ surgeons worked for an hour 4
" ueoris-strewn streets. Police line
AVE- lnrown across either end of Par
v,nue and across the intersectin
%%leets. Several times the polic
ne 40 the street of people in front q
va % Murray Hill Hotel. Torrents O
4 tba from broken mains poured int
4 Wa. tunnel shaft while the wreckag
A VA, oslhg cleared from the street rail
a tbe .supway, and II was feared tina
ueet might cave in.
many Theories of Explosion.
opsr,, pe cause Of the explosion and tn
sre ~ OF explosives that blew u
cause uehnitely known. Severa
i hat nave been advanced. One wa
E loom n,e started near the powde
Il ham ra.hldi ahd that Master Mechanic VIII
stter,rs, sDbs lost his life In a desperat
II The de.5,p quench II before II reache
n started infi Another was that
stray l'n spark produced by
n placed ul'nt ~ electricity. A thlr
tunnel n9iame upon a blast IN m
n r0sior 'Nl another gave "A gas "a
frori,. from electrical ooutaef a. a.
4 r,trs conduit of the street rsi,ya
asli.. it win probably tske ~ IN
4 sr.,t,'ftgatlon 10 reveal ~ ,r,,e v', er
very l, Several men VINO wer
rher 81 ~ ihe shan escaped viii
N0fs.a 1naffds ~ feet away WEI
Dlsf.. .t and seriously Injured