Evening journal., 1909-11-11

With a roar and a crash that could be
heard for miles. two mills in the upper
yard of the e. l. dupont de Nemours
Powder Company exploded at s12 o'clock
this morning, killing three men, blowing
the mills to atoms and badly damaging
residences in the neighborhood. The
victims of the explosion were:
Walter McDermott, aged "A, married, Of
Rockland.
Howard Darragh, aged 20. Of Walkers
Banks. Henry Clay.
Dominica Dinesto, aged 40, married, of
Eighth and Union streets.
In addition five children of Mr.. and
Mrs. Preston Biddle, who lived in a house
about $50 feet from the shattered mills,
and Samuel Glatz boarded in the
house. we're injured when part Of the
building was crushed in by the force of
the blow-up. The Biddle Baby. Harry one
year old, was seriously injured and for
awhile it was thought he might die but
he was bright and cooling at noon despite
the Jumps and cut on his head.
McDermott was blown to fragments,
and portions of his body were gathered
up in buckets by workmen and were
turned over to Coroner Gaynor. McDer-
mott was working in the packing mill the
house that first exploded. and which was
followed an instant later by the pris-
matte press mill, about hundred feet
N23N, IN which there was nobody at the
uE, tarragh and Dinesto were operating
y IL Nsmall freight car used to haul pow
+ when they were killed. They were
short distance from the mills and
were hurled TO the earth and their life
was crushed out by the terrible force
that swooped down upon them.
George Ward. who was in charge of
the car operation, was about a hum
dred feet or so away at the time and
escaped injury.
Married a Year.
McDermott had been married less
than a year and his wife is prostrated
by his tragic death. Dinesto is sur
vived by a wife and four small chill
dren, and many persons were turned
TO tears by the frantic walls of his
widow as she sought information about
her husband at the powder yard gates
Aside from the shattered mills ano
the Biddle residence, the beautiful
home Of Frank L. Connable, manager
of the black powder department anc
a , Ugh official in the powder com
pany, was badly damaged by the fore,
of the explosion.
Scarcely half dozen panes Of glas.
remained in tact in the building, Il
being the third time since Februar,
that the windows have been blown il
by the shock of explosions in tn,
powder yards.
Just how much powder was in tn,
packing house and the prismatic mil
is not known. They were filled up
according to several worlmen, anc
while it is known that there was
large quantity in each, the exac
amount is not known definitely Their,
was considerably more than a ton
of powder in each mill, it is said.
A short distance north of the wreck
ed mills was a frame storehouse tina
contained a few kegs of powder anS
II, too, was blown to smithereens.
Had Great Force.
While there have been explosions mucl
more disastrous in loss Of life at tn
powder yards. the explosion this morn
Ing probably was more severe in tn
way Of rocking houses than any that ha
occurred for many years.
II occurred near the northern end o
the upper Hagley yard, and only a shor
distance from the iron bridge spannin
The Brandywine. The mills that wen
up were down an embankment at tn
foot OF the road on which ST. Joseph
Catholic Church is located. Both mill
were built Of stone and brick, and no
unlike the other mills scattered throug
the yard The packing house, which wa
known technically as the Skin packin
house, was used for packing powder int
kegs and canisters for the market. TIL
prismatic press mill. about one hundre
feet south of IT, was used at one tim
for pressing powder into shape, but NOR
recently was a sort of a store house.
McDermott was the only man workin
in the packing house. What caused tn
explosion probably will never be know
He was the only peraon who could te
about it.
Blown to Fragments.
With roar the packing house wa
blown to bits, and with II went the bod
of McDermott. A second or so later tn
prismatic mill with its load OF blac
destruction also went up. In front (
the mills is a railway. Along It sma
cars are drawn, each by a horse, to col
vey the powder from one mill to anothe
George Ward was in charge Of the cs
operation this morning. but he was
hundred or two hundred feet ahead
the car when the explosion occurred. +
was knocked nat. but escaped injury b
yond a shock.
Darragh was sitting on the car ar
driving the horse. Dinesto had just le
the car to SO to spring nearby to g
n drink Of water. The car was on
a dozen feet or so from the mills wh'
they unloosed their destruction.
Both men and tho horse were hurl'