The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-07-04
Three Men Are Blown to Pieces
in Rock Quarry at
TOpliff.
FLASH EXPL0DES $50
KEGS OF BLACK POWDER
Little Short of Miracle That
Many Others We're Not
Killed.
Special to The Tribune.

were blown to atoms and buried be-
meath thousands OF tons of rock, and
half dozen others were seriously and
perhaps fatally injured, while fifteen
more men narrowly escaped death, when
n lightning flash struck and fused two
little copper wires connected with $50
great casks of black powder, exploding
the tremendous charge in a thirty FIVE
foot tunnel at the American LIMERICK
quarry, the property of the American
Smelling and Refining company, be-
tween and . clock this afternoon.
The Dead.
PATRICK CAMPBELL.
p, 3. BOWMAN.
MATT REAGAN.
Just few minutes before the explo-
sion occurred fifteen other men had
been passing the powder back handto-
hand through the tunnel 10 the face Of
the wall.
Campbell, Bowman and Reagan were
working at the far end of the tunnel.
of 100 kegs of black powder, and were
tamping down the dirt behind the
charge when the explosion occurred.
The powder was connected with two
small copper wires, which it was in
tended should be finally attached to a
little electric battery, situated several
hundred yards up the-hill from the
quarry.
\ heavy thunder storm was raging.
and frequently the sharp streaks of
lightning licked the lowering clouds
above the fated men, but they worked
on, oblivious Of the horrible fate that
awaited them.
lightning Plays Havoc.
Suddenly fierce bolt of lightning
shot from the sky and struck directly
which followed was drowned out of the
hearing of the Mortified spectators by
the tremendous explosion Of the powder
in the tunnel
When the lightning struck it sought
the line Of least resistance to the earth s
center, and finding the two copper wires
close together, fused them, completing
the circuit and giving an electric shock
thousand times greater than was
necessary TO explode the charge
The awful roar could be heard ten
miles, and the shock was terrific.
1t had been arranged that the pow
der should be set off by the battery on
the hill after the men had gone off
shift. When the premature explosion
occurred, the entire camp of Topliff
rushed 10 the scene, knowing that some
thing had gone wrong.
hundreds OF women and children
crowded around the tunnels smoking
mouth, and it was impossible to pacify
them.
Some Of the women shrieked in mad
ness and tore their hair, while others
laughed wildly. Back and forth they
ran. screaming out the names of their
husbands, lovers, fathers or brothers.
The scene was indescrlbably pathetic.
Confusion Is Great
So great was the confusion that it
was impossible TO acquaint the crowd
with the fact that only three men had
been killed outright in the tunnel.
The rescuers went to work like beav-
ers Hour after hour they toiled
through the murky night, the lurid light.
ming bursting over the place of horror
AS ten thousand tons of blasted rock
in the mountain side covered the shat
tered remains OF the unfortunate quar-
rymen, it was impossible to recover
more than one of the bodies. and this
was picked out in fragments. so that
the pieces could not be identified, The
name Of the man, the fragments of
whose body were found, is therefore
unknown.
II is not believed that the other bod
les Will be reached for many DAYS, and
il is possible that when the actual spot
where they stood is reached. no recog
nzable remains Will be found.
That the other fifteen men who had
been passing the powder back escaped
| is considered a miracle.
DR.. Holbrook of Lehi started lmme
diately for the scene of the explosion
on being summoned and worked hero
| ically over the wounded.