Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-03
HENRY LEES NOT
AMONG MISSING
Error Names Linotype Operator
in Casualty Roll of Times
Disaster
HARRY FLYNN IN DEATH LIST
Survivors Tell Stories of Minutes
Following Explosion and
Burst of Flames
HARRY FLYNN IN DEATH LIST

Noticing his name IN the puDnShed
lists of the missing in the Times dis
aster, Henry Lees, linotype operator,
made the rounds of the newspapers
yesterday evening to rectify the error,
and in the checking that followed it
developed that Harry Flynn, linotype
operator, instead of Lees, is one Of
the missing.
Where this news, as it spread,
brought joy to the friends and ac-
quaintances of Lees, who did not know
of his survival, it cast gloom over the
relatives and friends of Flynn, who
had been hoping against hope that
somehow he might turn up unin1ured,
as newspapers had not published his
name in the list of the missing. Flynn
is survived by wife.
Lees description of the incidents
that followed in such quick succession
after the deafening roar of the first
explosion, when all sought avenues of
escape, pictured a scene terrible in
swiftness of destruction of life and
property.
1T was terribly sudden said Lees.
"There came flash and an awful
roar like the report of an immense
cannon, the floor rising several feet,
while the flames seemed to shoot up-
ward where the main force of the ex-
plosion centered.
binding flash, which clearly showed
human beings hurled to destruction,
there was darkness and the clatter of
falling glass, above which could be
heard the cries of the men in the COM
posing room.
HEARS CALLS FOR HELP
LAS 1 rushed for the door, which
could now be seen by the rapidly in
creasing flames, I distinctly heard the
nVi6nnflV
pinned beneath their overturned lino-
type machines When but few feet
from the door, several of us hesitated,
thinking to rush back and search for
the injured, but the smoke and flames
were coming so quickly by that time
that 1t was impossible to do so, and
the only thing we could do under the
circumstances was to seek our own
safety, which some Of US succeeded in
doing.
by the utmost haste many of us
reached the First street entrance
Charles CULVER, who is among the
missing, Is believed to have been hit
by a missile hurled by the explosion.
He was working IN the composing
room, some distance from where the
explosion centered. which rendered
him physically unable to escape. Such
is the story of a fellow worker Hocke,
who endeavored to have Gulliver ac-
company him.
According to Hocke's story, he
grabbed Gulliver by the shoulders and
attempted to pull him along, but Gull
liver jerked himself free and drew
away. He seemed to be dazed.
AS Hocke hurried on with his fell
lows In the rush for the entrance he
glanced back and saw Gulliver circling
about. Hocke accounted for this
strange action by Gulliver having
been hit by a missile from the explo-
sion, which rendered him dazed.
sHANAHAN TELLS STORY
Linotype Operator Shanahan, 1t is
understood, had just returned from
the copy hook with take of copy"
and a composing stick in his hand,
and was about to place the composing
stick in position on the linotype ma
chine when the explosion occurred.
AS he rushed for the elevator he
heard many cries of entrapped opera
tors, evidently pinned beneath their
overturned machines He and several
others halted momentarily, thinking
to return and rescue the pinned down
operators who were calling for help.
The rescue work was made impossible
by the rush of the flames, and each
had to scramble as fast as possible to
the street.
with bandages swathed over burns
on head and hands received in the
disaster S. w. Crabill composing
room foreman, who was in charge of
that department when the explosion
occurred, was a conspicuous figure for
q few moments yesterday among the
vast throng that silently gazed upon
the many laborers removing the
debris.
From the story that he tells of his
escape after the sudden explosion, it
is a miracle that he ever lived to tell
it. Mr. Crabill related his story of
the awful moments that followed the
shock of the explosion, of his desper-
ate struggle for life against the odds
of smoke and flame.
"I had my back turned to the Sec
tion of the composing room where the
strength of the explosion seemed to
have centered," said Crabill, land as
[ quickly turned with the sound the
awful roar and lightning flash, 1 saw
the floor, with men and machines, rise
in the air.
FLAMES BURST FORTH
after the first laundering roar,
darkness settled momentariy, then
the flames flashed forth. Though
slightly dazed, started for where
l knew the elevator to be, toward
which man. of the others had already
started, and in the jam and the rush
I fell into the elevator shaft after
desperately grasping for the elevator
rope"
upon picking myself up, with sew
eral others, at the bottom of the shaft,
] was still more dazed, but had the
presence of mind to know that Sec
onds counted in getting safely out
of the trap.
1T started for the entrance which
leads into the adjoining building on
the north, but could not find the exit
in the darkness and binding smoke.
Suddenly the flames burst through the
floor above, lighting up the basement.
BY this light 1 could see the entrance
to the mailing room and / Immediately
rushed for that room, knowing that
there was chance to get out by the
sidewalk elevators.
"There are two chutes to the side
walks in the mailing room, paper lifts
as they are generally called. The
first chute which 1 made for was sud-
denly cut off by wall of flame and
smoke. I had to give this up and ran
to the other.
"By strength which did not know
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