The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-04-04

the surface from the bottom of a 800
foot shaft. The shock Of the explosion
was felt at Benton, twelve miles dis
tant.
One Killed at the Top.
One miner was killed and four were
severely injured at the mouth OF the
Dhaft IN which the explosion occurred
Ihe work Of rescue was begun at once
b\ miners who were arriving at the
time the explosion took place bun the
main shaft was SO badly wrecked that
rescue work has TO be carried On
through the air shafts. This has
hlndered the work of aiding the en-
tombed men TO such ar extent rna.
when darkness fell tonight only thee
bodies and one injured man had been
brought to the surface These bodies
were found forty feet from the bottom
of the air shaft and this is as far as
the rescuers have been able 70 pene-
trate the shaft.
Union Men Offered Aid.
A committee Of union miners from
DuquOin and other neighboring min
ing towns headed by District President
Morris FASTENED to Zeigler soon after
the explosion occurred and offered their
aid.
The bodies of the dead are 50 black
ened that they cannot at once be
identified. Rolly Campbell is the in
Jured miner brought out of the shaft
and it is said that he cannot live
Campbell is conscious but ne is una BILE
10 give any explanation of the accI-
dent.
There was much excitemenc among
miners when the accident became
known. because there had been i
strike of long duration and many con-
hicts had occurred between striker
and nOn-uniOn miuer9
Due IN Gao E0pfoSfop
All day investigation tends TO show
accidental explosion Of accumulated
gas.
Up to 10 o'clock tonight fifteen dead
bodies had been recovered. The work
Of rescue is made Very difficult and
dangerous by The fJLiucss @ the air in
found show marks Of the explosion.
Death in the other cases evidently &C
suited from asphyxiation.
Joseph Letter IS expected to reach
ZeiSler tonight. although il was 1T
first reported that he was en- route TO
Europe. Rescue work will contiuua all
night.
Tonight thirty-oue collins accom-
panied by an undertaken arrived in
ZeiSier.
Were TWO Explosions.
The number of dead is estimated at
thirty-four; wounded. three. il trans
pires that there were two explosions
close together.
The first explosion took place in the
air shaft and was followed by a much
greater explosion in the main shaft
There were employed in the mine only
lSQ men. 100 being al work today. Four
cages containing ten men of the day
force had gone down into the mine and
were supposedly at the bottom when
the catastrophe occurred.
The explosion wrecked the shaft
blowing out the slzids on which the
cages were hoisted. OF the thirty-four
men thought TO be dead only fifteen
had been taken out at 10 o'clock to-
night. Besides these bodies. three were
removed alive. but with fatal injuries.
Among the dead are James Reyburn.
engineer; J. r. Fink and Willis Camp
bell The remainder are Greeks aud
LthuanianS, and were DESIGNATED bv
numbers. As soon as the accident oc-
CURED the miners Of Daquoin sent the
following message to the ZeigIer Coal
company:
Miners here proffer assistance in any
number. Wire answer-A. T. Morris.
foreman"
The following answer was received:
Thanks for offer of yourself and
miners. Have all the help needed
Zeigler Coal company"
superintendent Hurd tonight said
that the shaft was a wreck and that
the main entrance was so disa bled that
il would take a week to repair it.
In the effort TO recover the entombed
men five reScuerS We're overcome nv
afterdamp- All the searchers for the
men below were let down by hand. In
two instances the men above were near
ly overcome by gas.