The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-04-30
MOUNTAIN FALLS ON A TOWN.
MYSTERIOUS EXPLOSION KILLS
MANY At FRANK, d. e.
vrrt Reports Of Volcanic Eruption Now
D,scredited-Explosion In Coal Mine
Believed 70 Have Caused the Disaster
shower OF Rock Covers the whole
yalIey-lOO May Have Perished.


yaIey-IOO May Have Perished.
WINNIPEG. Man. April IA shower Of
NICK from Turtle Mountain fell on the coal
mining town Of Frank. B. c., at 4 o'clock
this morning and the loss OF life 10 over
I'M The disaster u described In meagre
reports from the soene as due to volcanic
eruption following an earthquake. 1t may
prove to be only the result Of severe ex-
plosion in the mine.
Millions Of tons Of rock were scattered
over the whole valley. The mine buildings
and entrance were buried under . pile OF
Debris hundreds Of feet deep. Nine houses
IN the village are buried under the rock.
Their roofs were crushed in like eggshells
4. Leitch. his wife and four children are
among the dead. but his three little girls
escaped.
All men working at the mine on outside
job were instantly killed. 1t is supposed
that 100 perished. although the exact num-
Der il not known. for the records Of the Office
and the pay roll are buried under an i'm
mense pile Of broken rock.
The eruption damned UP the Old Man
River with forty feet Of rock and covered
the railway tracks for two miles east OF
the station with from forty to fifty feet of
debris.
The disaster destroyed the one telegraph
lire from the town. with the result that
only msagre details have been received
Of what seems likely to prove the worst
catastrophe in the history Of British Colu-
mbia.
4 de- pstch from Crenbrook. B. c.. iO4
Ill. - n. AkAN H. lx%o L.
Of the explosion st Frank was distinctly
felt at 40 O'Clock this morning.
Maynard Cowsn Of Spokane. principal
shareholder In the East Crows Nest Coal
Company, which has mines within few
mile Of Frank, Is In the city. He "a well
acquainted with the town and it's surround
ings. He says no cannot understand how
there could be volcanic eruptions In that
part Of the mountains and h inclined to
the opinion that gas caused the trouble.
For soms time past about loo tons OF
coal per day had been taken out Of the mine,
the G. p. R. using Il exclusively for its en-
gines and other requirements In that part
OF the country. He adds:
The mine entrance h at the foot Of the
Turtle Mountain. When ! was there last
the excavation was In length 1000 feet, rs
in Insight and Is feet wide. II is possible
that this may be filed with gas and ex-
ploded, but In such case the explosion
should have bean 1t the mouth OF the mine
and should not have affected the town In the
way n appears 70 have DONE
The town Of Frank was named after M.
L. Frank, ths owner Of the mine. Mr..
Frank went h thsge thrse ysau ago and be
he's sincs that time spent 100000 In opening
up Tie mine and putting II into shape. Mr..
Frank Aad q. ". Gebo. the manager Of
the mine. arS at present on their way to
France with The object Of selling the mine
10 French syndicate.
Assistant General Manager Leonard OF
the c. P. r. said he had little to add to the
dispatches which had already been received.
There was no doubt. however. that the
trouble was caused BY volcanic eruption.
o. no mine explosion could have had such
q fsr-reaching effect. He says:
MY advic,s from General Superintendent
Jameson at Calgary show that the rock is
blown into the river completely blocking it
up, and that the top Of the mine is still
burning. am afraid that things will turn
out WORSE than the first dispatches indi-
Gated, but every preparation 10 being made.
MscLeod, Cranbrook and Fernie with doc
tors, nurses and hospital stores to give
the necessary aid.
Our agent at Cranbrook says the railway
track is covered for q distance Of two miles
east Of the station with from forty to atty
feet Of rock and at the time this despatch
was received the rock was still coming
down the mountain over the mouth Of the
mine in vast quantities. We purchase
much Of the coal produced there and find
IT well suited for our purposes. We use
about 100 tons per day
A message received at o:20 tonight from
Frank says: 10f the seventeen entombed
miners fifteen are out without injury and
two are dead from suffooation. One Of the
uninjured found his houes covered with
rock and his wife and six children killed.
n proved that those In the mine were safer
than those out OF II. The inside workings
Of the mine are intact. No explosion and
no signs Of gas were felt by the sntombed
miners until O'Clock this afternoon. They
worked their own way out through thirty
feet Of rock. timbering a. they went. Plenty
Of air u now going into the mine
The Rev. c. W. Gordon (Ralph Connorl
WIN yooiu ~ utu tuA1osoaioiy Wofh Nj
this district, and. indeed. the scene Of
The Sky Pilot n laid in the foothills in
the centre Of which wss the Hl-fated town
Of Frank. Mr.. Gordon said tonight that
Prank. a. he knew II, was hamlet popu-
lated by the miners engaged In the eur
rounding country. and II the report Of the
oss Of life proves correct. he fears that
eter desracbes viii tell of small town
with bright prapects being wiped on the
map.
The town Of Frank is in the Lethbridge
district on the Canadian Pacific Railway
and IA only fifteen miles from Crows Neet.
new coal mining town, which has
grown up rapidly.
HELENA. Mon. April 7e-The town OF
Frank WIS founded In 1901 The properties
are valuable. including the richest fields In
the great coal belt Of the region in Canada.
where they are located. Frank IL seventy
ffve miles east OF Fernie, b. c., where q
DISASTROUS explosion occurred few months
ago, Frank has q population Of about
1910 persons
The oficen Of the Frank Coal Mining
Company are: Precedent, II. l.. Frank Of