Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1907-10-23

and received a fracture of the Leg
Many School Children Hurt.
Three school buildings were de.
stroyed at Fontanet and Coal Bluff.
two miles away. All were filled with
school children, and every one of
those was more or less injured by
the collapse of the buildings.
"a fOur-roOm school building was
torn to pieces and not one of the 200
children escaped unhurt. None was
fatally hurt. A two-room school build
ing at Coal Bluff was turned over
and collapsed. The teacher and 80
pupils were injured.
The force of the explosion DESTROYED
all telephone communication with out.
side towns and it was with great diff.
ficulty that aid was summoned. Terre
Haute and Brazil sent physicians and
nurses with supplies in cars and auto.
mobiles across the country, while spe.
cial trains were made up and run by
the Big Four railroad for the care OF
the injured.
Gov. Hanly at Indianapolis ordered
the Terre Haute company of the In.
diana National Guard here to patrol
the ruined district and protect life
and property. The governor arrived
in the evening about the time the sol
diers reached here. He brought with
him 700 tents and cots.
Coroner Leavitt arrived in the aft
ernoon and at once began an investi
cation into the cause of the catastro
phe, which up to the present time
remains as much mystery as when
the explosion occurred.
Terre Haute Cares for Many.
Terre Haute, Ind-Hospitals and
homes in Terre Haute were thrown
open to care for the injured in the
Fontanet powder explosion. Relief
trains, carrying physicians and sup
plies, were hurried to the scene and
the injured were brought to this city
Five of the injured died in the hos
pital.
While hurrying to St. Anthony s
hospital, the city ambulance was
struck by street car and wrecked
No one was injured, but it is feared
the shock will be fatal to the explosion
victims who were in the ambulance
Sheriff Horsley went to the scene at
once and organized a force of depu
ties. A corps of city policemen also
was sent to Fontanet. Company E
went to Fontanet in the evening with
provisions for week. Ball cartridges
were issued to be used in case of loot
ing.
Citizens subscribed more than $4,000
to the relief fund and the council ap
propriated $1,000 to be expended tt
relieve suffering.
Story Of Superintendent Nash.
Superintendent Nash of the Dupont
Powder company at Fontanet, who
was seriously injured about the head
and hips, at hospital Tuesday night
said that he knew nothing after the
explosion until he was picked up 100
yards distant from the plant. He
said:
superintendent Monahan, myself
and T. T. Kellup, a representative OF
the eastern company at Wilmington
DEL, were in the business Office Mr.
Monahan and I were looking over the
mornings mail, which had just ar
rived. Mr.. Kellup was reading news
paper. This is the last l remember
until I was picked up on the hill"
Mr.. Nash said that the loss on the
plant would be more than 100000. In
the nine years he has been in the
plant II persons have been killed
Trouble had been experienced in the
past few days with the shaft in the
glazing room. Several times the shaft
became overheated and required the
stopping of the machinery.
Panic on Passenger Train.
Indianapolis, Ind.-A. r. Dickson
conductor of Big Four passenger train
NO. 2, which was four miles from
Fontanet at the time of the powder
explosion, arrived in Indianapolis
Tuesday afternoon and told the fol
lowing story:
AT the time of the explosion the
passengers on my train made a mad
rush for the doors of the cars, and il
was with difficulty that they were pre-
vented from jumping off the plat
forms. Glass in the windows crashed
to the floor and everything was con
fusion on the train. The first evidence
we had of any disaster was a terrific
explosion that fairly lifted the cars
from the tracks. Following in quick
succession was another explosion that
was equally as bad, and then another
one came which was somewhat light
er. My first thoughts were that dyna
mite, which the railroad company had
been using, had exploded l looked
out of the window and could see plain
ly dense clouds of smoke caused by