Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1902-04-01
MEN BLOWN TO BITS
twenty-five Miners Killed by Terrific
Explosion of Gas,
LIST or DEAD MAY GO STILL HIGHER
Large Numbers of Others Injured, Some of
Whom Will Die.
PREMATURE BLAST CAUSES TROUBLE
seventy-Five Men Are Employed at the
Fatal Place,
PREMATURE BLAST CAUSES TROUBLE
MOST OF MINERS ESCAPE UNFRAMED
Scene of Disaster Is Tennessee Coal
shaft I'm which Two other seri-
GUS Explosions Are said to
Have Occurred.

CHATTANOOGA Tenn. March 3i.-At
4:45 o'clock this afternoon an explosion OF
gas in the Nelson mine of the Dayton Coal
and Iron company at Dayton ignited tho
dry coal dust in the mine and caused ter
rife explosion. Twenty-Five men are
known to be dead. Reports from Dayton
at midnight are that eleven bodies have
been taken from the mine. The company
claims there are but eight more bodies in
the mine. Miners claim there are twelve
to fifteen more. Rescuing parties are at
work. but at a late hour tonight struck
a heavy fall of slate that will delay them
for day or two.
Dead.
LARK HUNTER.
ALEX TAFFER.
JAMES FRANKLIN.
JOHN HARVEY.
TOM SHAVER.
JAMES HARRIS.
p. G. TRAVIS-all white.
GEORGE GRIFFIss.
BEN GRIFF1SS.
REESE DEAN.
NORRIS PIERSoLL.
MORGAN SMITH.
JOHN ROBINSON
J. E. HILL
BRYANT SMITH.
MACK FoUsT-all colored, and si1
others, names unknown.
Injured.
W. T. Head brother of James Head, su-
perintendent of the mine burned inter-
nally; will die.
James Riley (whlte), right leg broken;
bruised about the face.
VIII Pressnell (white), badly burned
william Scarborough (whiteI, badly
burned.
Arthur Hughes (white).
George Wafford (colored).
Tom Cummings '(white).
Henry Gonyon (whte).
Gas exists in the Nelson mine and the
men are required to use safety lamps. 1t Is
the rule of the company for the miners to-
place their fuses ready to be lighted for
blasts ju}t before quitting work each day.
and there are workmen known as "nre-
men" who go through the mine after all the
miners are out and set off these blasts.
shoot Blasts TOO Soon.
The miners quit work at 4:So o'clock this
afternoon. 1t takes about forty-f1ve mintes
to get out of the mine. The two "fremen"
today who are supposed to have caused the
explosion are Lark Hunter and John Har-
before all the miners could get out Of the
mine. 1t is supposed that one of the fuses
was defective and resulted in what ia
known as blown blast. The fame shoot
ing out from the blast ignited the gas,
which in turn ignited the accumulation of
dry coal dust in the mine. The explosion
that followed was terrific. The flame shot
out OF the mouth OF the mine and the shock
completely wrecked the shed at the mine
entrance Three men we're killed while
standing outside the mine and two we're
seriously and one fatally injured.
Two other Serious Explosions.
This mine has been the scene of two
serious explosions in the past. In 1889 four
men were killed and eight seriously in
jured by an explosion OF gas.
December 20, 1895, an explosion OF mine
dust occurred, In which twenty eight lives
were lost. This was caused by miner
carrying an open lamp, contrary to regula-
tions. In May. 1901, an explosion Of .
similar nature occurred In the Shalliday
mine, operated by the same company, In
which twenty-one lives were lost.
The force of the explosion In the Nelson
mine today was terrible. Bodies were
literally mangled and torn to pieces. The
company states that there were but sew
enty-five men at work In the mine today.
Most of them we're out of the mine N,s1en
the eXDlosion occurred