The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1904-11-29
KILLED BY GAS EXPLOSION
Generator House Of New York City
Gas Company Destroyed.
FOUR OTHERS BADLY INJURED

Houses shaken For Biocks and People
Terrified by tho Conclusion Police
Experienced Great Difficulty In Keep
ing the Crowds Back From the Region
Of Danger.
New York City.--One workman was
killed and four others were badly in
Jured In an explosion in the generating
house Of the Consolidated Gas Conn
pany'g plant in West Forty fourth
street between Eleventh and Twelfth
avenues. Great sheets of flame shot
out from the windows on Forty fourth
street and from those on Eleventh ave-
nue., terrifying passers-by, many Of
whom were thrown from their feet.
The explosion shook the houses for
two blocks, waking late sleepers and
sending others into the streets to find
out what had happened. Sergeant Nc.
Cam, hearing the report in the West
Forty -se venth street police station hur.
ried the reserves to the scene Of the ac-
cident- They had considerable diff
Guilty in keeping the crowd away until
they said that any one Of the great
tanks in the neighbOrho0d was likely
to explode. This cleared the streets.
James T. Kane, seventeen years old,
Of 676 Eleventh avenue, died in the
Roosevelt Hospital two hours aftel the
explosion. His skull was fractured
Others who were taken to Roosevelt
Hospital were:
Patrick Barry thirty years old,
of $40 West Fifty second street, who
had decorations Of the right hand and
left leg.
James Burns. twenty years old, OF
554 West Forty eighth street, who was
severely burned about the face and
hands.
John Noonan, twenty-one years old.
Of 40 West Forty-ninth street. who
was badly burned about the face and
hands,
David Mcmahon. forty one years old,
Of sos West Forty third street, whose
many bruises.
Two other workmen refused to go to
the hospital, although they were pain.
fully hurt. William J, Hawthorne. the
superintendent IN charge at the time OF
the explosion, was painfully bruised
and burned, but refused to leave the
wrecked building until the damage to
the generating machinery had been re
paired. He then went home to nurse
his injuries.
According TO the people in the neigh
b0rhood the explosion which caused all
these injuries was preceded, at I
O'clock, BY a lighter one They say
that after the first explosion carriages
were summoned and three men were
taken to their homes. A policeman
who was near tells the same story but
it was denied at the offices of the COM
pany.
Because of recent troubles and conse
Quent repairs wOrkmen had put wood.
en- caps instead of steel caps in the big
main that carries the freshly made gas
from the generators. One of these
caps Is at the end of the main nearest
Eleventh avenue Another is near
Forty fourth street. When the expIo-
sion occurred Kane who was killed.
was working over that cap. The cover
blew off, crushing his skull, and the
explosion hurt several who were near
him.
Some Of the forty workmen in the
place were hurled yards away by the
explosion.
The building lost all of its windows
and its big skylight. The generators
and the main were repaired in a few
hours. There was an abundance OF
gas in the tanks, and the supply to the
neighborhoOd was not even slackened.
Superintendent Hawthorne said that
he didn't know what had caused the
explosion. One workman said he
thought a spark from a gas engine had
caused all the trouble.
superintendent Hawthorne was ar
rested on a technical charge OF homi.
eide. Coroner Scholer accepted $500
bail for him.