The Washington herald., 1910-12-20
NINE ARE KILLED
IN GAS EXPLOSION
Continued from Page One.

the investigation that it collected in the
shed-llke place beneath the power sta
ton. There were few men at that hour in
the two upper stories, and If any of the
others noticed the Odor Of the gas they
apparently paid no attention TO IL. al
though il became so strong that several
people in the apartments directly across
Flfueth street said afterward that they
had noticed II.
Just what set of this accumulation OF
gas is not certain.
One story has it that laborer dropped
q crowbar across the third rail while
working at the derailed car, and that
the flame, following the short circuit, fired
the gas, which. mixing with the air. had
become highly explosive. Most Of the
men in the immediate neighborhOol of
the broken pipe were either killed or
TOO badly hurt 10 tell about the happen
ing ghe railroad officers say that it is
very likely that an electric spark OF
some kind set off the blast
RebOunded from wall.
II is agreed. however, that the ex-
plosion came as one mighty shock. and
not. as first reported. in two distinct
shocks. II tore upward and outward
through the power station building. IN
roofing it and sending the north wall into
Fifueth street The east wall was push
ed bodily out into Lexington avenue.
The blast seemed to rebound from the
solid wall Of the six-story ventilating
plant, which the railroad company has
almost completed. Just to the west of the
power station. for the zone of Wreckage
extended much farther to the east than
in any other direction
The fun force of the blast struck a
northbOund Lexington avenue trolley
car. which was almost on the F1fteth
street crossing. The car was blown
from the tracks and toppled over on
an electric truck belonging 20 the Edison
Electric Light Company.
AT the same time. Miss Edith Offner,
a stenographer employed by the Cosmo-
politan Magazine. who was passing the
Lexington avenue side of the power sta
ton. was blown across the street and
underneath the trolley car, where her
body was Wedged beneath the forward
truck Her body was so terribly man
gled that her brother was able to identify
it only by the shoes.
Like Artillery Fire.
The trolley car was torn and splintered
as though riddled by artillery fire. Three
Of the seven passengers were killed.
Miss Mary b. Pope. of 1S4 East Fortieth
street. a teacher in Miss Chapins pri-
vate school at 81 East Fifty-seventh
street, one of the passengers. had her
head crushed by a huge splinter. shot
arrow-like from the power station build
ing. Edward Henderson, Of 5s East
Fifty-fourth street, and Charles Roberts,
an Adams Express Company clerk, were
found dead in the wreckage of the car
Frederick Smith, the driver or the Edi-
son automobile in which he was riding
alone. escaped injury in a remarkable
manner. He said, in relating his ex-
perience:
Before l realized there had been an
explosion there was a rain Of bricks and
mortar and then big timber shot down
out of the sky. I had one foot on the
brake and the other on the acceterator.
and the timber passed between my legs,
smashed through the floor of the car and
remained upright keeping the trolley car
from crushing me as it turned over"
Begin Work of Rescue.
Firemen from hook and ladder No >.
who got into the open as soon as they
could pick themselves up after the ex-
plosion, began the work of rescuing the
living and recovering the bodies from the
trolley car. The police from the East
Fifty-hrst street station, which had been
shakenaby the explosion. got into action
almost at once. and they We're scarcely
at work trying to rescue the men caught
in the path OF the ruins and injured by
flying debris Wnen the reserves from all
the neighboring precincts came pouring in.
Three alarms of fire had been sent in
from the Eighth Battalions headquarters.
and while a few of the firemen got TO
work on the flames that were beginning
to show in the debris of the power sta
ton, the rest hurried through the house
lending aid where it was needed and as