The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1905-08-11
AWFUL EXPLOSION
Which Carried Instant Death and
Destruction Over Wide Area.

Remarkable Accidents Due to Flying
Iron and Rock. Woman Blown
Into River. Man soaIded.
Exploding and flying high In air, a
big boiler Of the New York oity sub.
way tunnel paint near the North river
recently scattered Jagged iron and in
jury for blocks around and left In the
ruins behind 1t a man scalded almost
to death. Brave volunteers answered
his calls for help and forced their way
to him and out again through heavy
steam and rain of minor missiles from
the sky. He died later in the j. Hood
Wright hospital. Other men, too,
we're carried out, two of them near
death, and there were other rescues
IN stranger places. One Of these was
OF woman whom the concussion lit.
orally blew into the river, another
motor toat race to q hospital with
three wounded boys.
Ohe bizarre effect Of the blast was
the topping into the river of forty
oath houses that floated away, leaving
tWoScore OF bathers in predicanent
as Go clothing and hOmeward journeys
that only night and deal of charity
solved. The physical shock of the ex
plosion was felt for a mile around. Its
after effects were felt by the whole
city. 1t stoprad all work on the west
branch OF the subway the rock tunnel
under Washington heights. The boiler
was one or four In long sheet iron
power house that furnished light and
compressed air for the deep rock work
ings OF the uptown subway. The ex-
plCsion destroyed the other boilers
and much Of the machinery and set
back the completion of that section
indefinitely. A former accident. a
cave.in, had already delayed the work
seriously, but 1T had been planned to
open the subway to its uttermost limit
In the fall.
The cause OF the explosion was not
definitely know, but two men were
placed under arrest. Had the acci.
dent occurred on week day, with
more than 500 men working in the
tunnel, there might have been great
loss OF life. Air would have been shut
+, II from the workers. The explosion
occurred In what is known as Nc.
Kabes power house, which lies Just
east of the New York Central tracks.
Three years ago McKabe failed and
sold out to a man named Hunt, and
after thai John b. Mcdonald, the
subway contractor, gained control of
Che works for the purpose Of finishing
the long subway tunnel at that point
The power house consisted OF q sheet
.rota hnild Ing the. lengbh of three city,
lots and running back q distance o.;
100 reet. -Four tall ohimneys rising
hfty feet In the air stand at the cor.
ners Of the building, which contained
besides the comprising plant ano
dynamos battery of four eighty
horsepower boilers, and 1t was one OF
lhese which blew up. 1t was just a
1850 O'Clock THAT the quiet OF the Sun
lay afternoon was broken by the ter
flhc roar OF the bursting boiler. l.
vas followed Immediately by an up
rising cloud Of dense black smoke
0nrough which pieces of rock, stop,
Ind steel shot up as much as 800 fee
IN the air In all directions.
| The shock was felJ over o mile away
where folk on the oars to and from
| tort George were almost shaken from
0neir seats by the cOnoussion. Patro
man George Kethman was on dnt,
near the scene, and, instantly realiz
ing that great accident had hap
pened, he telephoned first to police,
headquarters and then to the J. Hooo
! Wright hospital for ambulances ana
ran to the wafer 'front.' Before him
what second before had heen q great,
@tr0ng building was nothing but a
broken and twisted mass OF smoking
ruins, from which came shouts and
screams for help Let nae out! Let
me outl" shricked voice from the
very center OF the wreckage. Pm
ooiling to death Do anything! /
want to diel / want to die!"
BY this time large crowd had
gathered near the smoking ruins, and
as the agonizing cries broke out afresh
scores Of faces blanched Three men
jumped forward and pressed their
way into the building toward the
screaming man. AS they disappeared
In the smoke and dust women who
we're present called to them to come
back and not to risk their lives in
what seemed to be vain hope. For
awhile nothing was heard of them
out after several minutes they were
seen to emerge from the steamnp
clouds bearing in their arms the body
OF a colored man practically stripped
to the skin. He was Joseph Morgan
\ fireman, who had been In the phi
stocking when the boiler exploded.
With the exception Of some shred,
! or underwear Morgan was naked. Hi.
head and body we're scalded In dozef
, places where the boiling steam hat
caught him, and one arm was stripped
or flesh almost to the bone, Yet the
man was conscious. His screams only
made the work the harder for his res
cuers. lie was laid on the ground anc
after few minutes was whisked of
to the j. Hood Wright hospital
where he fingered In agony until earl,
! morning, when he died. The mer
who braved death to save him were
Edward l.. Byrnes, Albert Hildebranc
and Andy Marshall. These men i'm
; mediately after getting Morgan tx
safety turned back again to help the
other poor wretches who had beer
caught In the building. Meantime