Evening journal., 1910-12-19
NINE DEAD In
GAS EXPLOSION
Spark From Third Rail Fires
ACetyIene Tank Causing
Horrible BIOw-up
WRECKS RAILROAD AND
OTHER PROPERTY

By United Press Leased Special Wire
NEW YORK, Dec. 19.-Nine persons
are dead, eight are missing and sup
posed to be dead, and flfty injured, the
result of a mysterious explosion which
wrecked the milk depot and carpen-
ter shop of the New York Central rail-
way at Forty-ninth st-eet and Lex
ington avenue today. So terrific was
the force of the explosion that the
big. new powerhouse of the New
Haven railroad, which is Immediately
behind the demolished structure, was
almost completely destroyed. while
all adjacent property was badly bat
tered and windows in all buildings
for radius of a dozen blocks woro
blown out
II was at first reported that the ex-
plosion was In the boiler house. Later
this was proved a mistake and then
the officials of the railroads and the
police heard that il was due either TO
J the explosion Of a quantity of acety-
lene gas or dynamite. One report was
that switchmen running a car loaded
with dynamite TO be used for the ox-
cavation for the New York Central
terminal into the depot lost control
OF IL and IL smashed against a track
bumper and exploded. The identified
dead:
Mrs. Mary b. Poke. passenger in
street car.
Patrick Jordan
Frank Spagg.
y. B. Liyrmore, empioye OF the
railroad.
c. NJ. Morrow, employo Of the rail-
road.
Police Francis Kelly, who was a
passenger on the wrecked Lenox and
Lexington avenue car, was twice re-
ported dead. but is In Flower Hospi-
tai critically injured
Kelly was one Of the heroes OF the
accident. To United Press repre-
sentative he said:
IL was standing on the back plat.
form OF the car aud happened TO be
looking directly az the building.
saw fash OF smoke. lust like 70,
would expect from a dynamite ox-
plosion. was hurled on the car
which saw lifted of the track anl
thrown over ON a passing automohilg
For moment I was stunned
saw men and women imprisoned in tn
car unable TO get out and faintIng NJ,
first instinct WAS to aid them. I man
aged to pull one dead woman out o
the car. The second woman l dragge,
out seemed to be dying. Then / faint
ed and remember nothing TIL / wal
brought here"
Kelly's left leg was broken. and h
received a severe cash in his necl
and bad scalp wound, but the ply
sicians declare he may recover.
That the disaster was not far great
er is due 10 the fact that It took plac
at S.15 in the morning. Three quarter
OF an hour later there would have bee
many additional victims because Of tn
fact that the concussion wrecked tn
big parOchial school of St. Patrick
Cathedral at 51st street and Lexine
ton avenue. This school was an al
tendance of more than 1900 scholar
and the largest class room IN Il wa
demolished. On account of the earl
hour, however, there were only hal
a dozen scholars in the building. The
were not badly hurt. Two boys stand
ing in front Of the building, however
we're knocked down and cut by fiyin
glass.
A street car of the Lexington avenu
line which was passing at the tim
was thrown from the track, on il
side, crashing on an automobile owne
by Charles Shepherd of the Eliso
Electric Company which was passing
Two persons I'm the street car. an
one I'm the automobile we're killei
while a number of others were badl
e hurt
George Norcross who keeps a stor
= on Third avenue aided in getting th
injured out of the wrecked street ca
/ He helped policeman Kelly out an
\ found that a big splinter OF glas
! from a shattered window had pene
trated Kelly's lungs. The policema
. died later in a hospital.
The police said that the explosio
was probably caused by the ignitio
of a tank containing acetylene ga
. which was In a car in the milk depo
It was set off, they said, by a spar
from the third rail. This explosio
causing the blowing up of the ca
laden with dynamite.
The dynamite was owned by Ii
/ Terry and Tench Contracting Con
pany which is building the new Ne
n York Central tunnel, and the Officia
Y Of that firm sent word TO the distri
attorney asking that he institute a
, investigation to locate the respons
= bility.
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