Omaha daily bee., 1906-10-06
TWENTY.NlNE BODIES FOUND
Number Of Victims Of PocshOntas Explo-
sion Will Probably Reach seventy,
EXACT NUMBER OF MISSING UNDETERMINED
one Hundred Miners, Besides Drivers
Trackmen and Trappers Usually
at work in wrecked
section.

nine bodies have been recovered from the
west fork of the Pocahontas Collieries
company mine at Pocahontas, Va, and a
conservative estimate tonight places the
total number of dead al seventy.
The rescuing party reached the scene OF
the explosion. but the immense amount OF
debris and wreckase has hampered the
cearch for bodies. There is no evidence
thus far Of fire.
There is nothing authentic to be learned
from any source as TO the actual number
Of men who perished in the disaster. Us
ualy there are about 100 miners in the Sec
tlon affected by the explosion, exclusive
of the drivers, trappers, prop settlers and
trackmen. The only way to tell how many
are missing would be to make a complete
census of the companys employees but the
excitement is so intense that this cannot
| be done. on the streets OF Posahontas
on the railroad and wherever men congre
gate there are estimates made, but they
vary. II Is said tonight that IL will take
ten days to clear the mine Of wreckag'
and slate
! The most fortunate feature of the ca
tastrophe is the fact that the mine die
not take fire.
Twenty-Nine bodies Found.
I
known to modern mining for the slfety o.
it's employees. Four bodies were recovered
up to Thursday evening During Thursia,
night eleven were brought out. This morn
ing at 7l5 seven bodies were brought out
making total of twenty-five. About nooi
a relief party reported that seven more hac
been found and were being brought out.
! Pocahontas is plunged into gloom. Score
| of relatives and friends are watching to
night by the side of dead loved ones Hal
a score of men were put to work this morn
ing digging graves in the same cemeter!
and close to the spot where in 1904 over 20
who had perished in a similar explosion
were buried
At the improvised morgue, Hungarians
Italians and negroes thronged to identif!
the dead and as fast as this was dom
the bodies were placed in coffins and re
moved to their homes. Enormous crowd
1 gathered here from all over the vast Goa
field and all the saloons of the little tow
were closed. This prevented any trouble
The mine tonight is reported free fron
gases and safe for the relief parties L
work in There is considerable debris an,
wreckage. Inc one entry seven loaded Goa
cars had been overturned.
Fifteen Miners Entombed.
DENVER. Oct. 5.-According to a specia
to the News, fifteen men are believed t
have been entombed in the Dutchman min
at Blessburg, New Mexico, early this morn
ing by an explosion which wrecked tn
walls and roof of the tunnel in which the
were working. However, only six men al
positively known to have been in the tun
mel at the time of the explosion, but til
usual night shift numbers fifteen and non
of them have been located outside of tn
mine.
Rescuing parties have taken out fou
dead bodies, one of which has been iden
tined as Jams Janiski, single man, 10 year
old. All but one Of the night shift wer
Austrians, the exception being an Amer
can. Fire damp has settled in the tur
} mel. making rescue in the tunnel difficult
1t is not thought that any of the er
tombed men can live with this conditio
prevailing AS yet no fire has been re
ported. The mine is owned and operate
by the st. Louis. Rocky Mountain and Pa
cihc company and is well equipped wit
all modern electrical appliances. The eau
of the explosion is not known.