Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-11-03
BURIED ALIVE IN
A TRINIDAD MINE
Colorado Mining Town the Scene
Of a Horrible Disaster.
AT LEAST SIXTY ARE DEAD
The Cause of the Accident Was an
Accumulation of Gas Which Sud-
denly Exploded, Burying
Man in the Debris.


Trinidad, Col, Oct. ga terrific
explosion occurred at mine No. 3 of
the Rocky Mountain Fuel & Iron Co.,
at Tereio, 40 miles due west of Trini-
dad, at 1870 Friday afternoon, and the
number of dead is variously placed be-
tween thirty and sixty men. The num-
Der reported as having gone into the
mine Friday morning was II miners
and four company lei Many more
miners are known to have gone into
the mine. but the exact number of
dead may never be known, as the mine
is burning, and in all likelihood the
bodies will be cremated. A large num-
Der of mine officials left here as soon
as word Of the accident was received.
Company doctors were picked up all
along the line, as well as all other
available physicians. United States
Government Stock Inspector F. J.
Foreman was at the Tereio when the
explosion occurred. He returned here
Friday night, and gives the following
account of the affair:
Inspector FOreman's Story.
Il was standing not more than 300
yards from the mouth of the tunnel
when the explosion occurred. The ex-
blosion was preceded by a low rum
bling sound resembling an earthquake,
which made the earth tremble and
startled the whole camp.
ii looked toward the mine, and out
of the mouth of the tunnel and two
airshafts came a great volume Of
smoke and dust, which continued for
nearly a minute. Out of the two air.
shafts, each of which are seven feet
in diamenter, timbers that were fully
from two to three feet in diameter
were shot into the air and broken into
splinters. Rocks were thrown over the
camp for a distance of a quarter of a
mile. In fact, is rained rocks, broken
timbers and all kinds of debris for
fully a minute, and many people were
injured by being struck with these
missiles.
Immediately after the exposition,
which was for all the world like a vol
canic eruption, caused the widest ex-
element. Women, men and children
rushed to the mouth of the tunnel, and
women whose husbands were in the
mine had to be brought away by mi
ners to keep them from being killed by
deadly fumes coming from the mouth
of the tunnel"
Sixty Men in the Mine.
The mine in which the accident &C.
Cured works 80 men, and it is be-
lieved that at least 60 men were in the
mine at the time.
News of the explosion brought as
sistance from the adjacent camps, and
IN Friday night hundreds of men were
trying to get into the mine. Deadly
fumes overcome the rescuers frequent
ly, but their places were Immediately
taken by others ready to risk their
lives. 1t is not thought possible that
any one in the mine can escape death,
If they are not all dead already.
1t will be impossible to secure names
of the dead and injured for some time.
Nearly all the miners employed are
Slavs. The mine was opened only a
year ago. and extended 1000 feet into
the hill. The explosion is supposed to
have been caused by dust. But n
body has been recovered, that of T.
Duran, a driver, who was just entering
the tunnel when the explosion &C.
Cured. He was torn and burned al
most beyond recognition.
All mines within a radius of 20 miles
have been shut down, and the miners
are on the way to assist in rescue of
the bodies.