New-York tribune., 1911-04-08
Bodies Not MutiIated.

None Of the bodies recovered was mutt
lated. death doubtless having been caused
by inhaling flames and gases. The res
cuers are pushing into the mine and it Is
thought that all of the bodies will be re-
covered within a few hours
The fire started in an engine house at the
opening of slope leading from the dia-
mend vein. 80 feet from the surface. There
were four hundred men in the mine when
the fire started. about sixty OF them in the
workings into which the slope led These
sixtv were at work in "blind" tunnel al
the end OF the slope.
Escape was completely blocked by fire,
smoke and the generated gases. possibly
before these men and boys realized their
danger. The other men scattered in dlfter-
ent workings. got out by various exits.
James Vickers, a fire boss. who was near
the engine house when the fire broke OUT
gave the alarm and tried 10 get to the tun-
mel where he knew a large body OF men
were al work. He got only a snort dls-
tance before he was forced TO turn BACK
and it was with difficulty he dragged him.
self through the smoke at the point OF the
fire. He was SO exhausted that ne had 10
he carried TO the surface He gave II as
his opirion then that no man could live flve
minutes in the tunnel which he had tried 10
traverse.
Gangs of Uiiners at the Pancoast' leu Dy
Mine Superintendent Joseph Brtley and
assisted by the Throop fire department.
carried hose into the mine and fought the
fire under great difficulties.
The United States mine rescue car sta
toned in Wilkes-Barre was summoned
early in the afternoon. and later on the
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western kaA-
roads hospital car and the Lehish valley
conpanv's mine rescue force from Wilkes
Barre came TO the scene.
Three men with the oxygen tanks and
helmets on succeeded in penetrating the
slope for a hundred feet after the blaze
at the engine house had been suodued' ana
+bev came upon the bodies of the two
men and boy. Their faces were buried
in the wet culm as If they had died trying
~ escape the deadly gases and intense
heat.
Heat Was Terrific.
The finding Of these bodies led the res
cuers 10 believe that no one was ahVe IN
the tunnel. and they renewed their attack
on the burning area to reduce the terrlnc
heat When this work had proved some
What effective a corps OF the expert rescue
men. with the latest style rescue armor
rushed on into the slope and later came
,,pon several bodies strewn along the road
wav. where the men had fallen over one
another in their frenzied fight 10 get to
the end of the slope. The bodies were car
ried 10 the foot o, the shaft and stacked
I'D in piles in the narrow space, 20 be
taken out after nightfall. so that some OF
the horror Of the spectacle would be hid
den by the darkness from the sight OF the
distracted wives, children and other rela-
tives Of the victims who thronged the
mouth OF the shaft
Throop borough officials deputy patrol
men and a squad OF the state constabulary
were summoned from Peckville. three
miles away, 10 take care OF the crowds
There was no violence.
The colliery is owned and operated by
the Price Pancoast Coal Company. at the
head OF which is John r. Dryden, general
manager of the Ontario Western col
lieries in this region. II is one Of the larg-
est and most up-to-date collieries.
Joseph B. Dickson. president OF the Scran-
ten Coal Company. issued the following
statement at his home in Morristown. n. 7.
last evening
From the information available now IL
is not possible to tell how the fire started
There is no combustion down in the mine
~ all. The engines are run by steam sent
down through pipes from the boiler house
GU the surface Of the ground
The engine house that caught fire is
called head house being at the head OF
IN inclined plane up which the coal is
hauled by cable cars. II is probable that
one Of the men employed around the head
nouse' threw a lighted cigarette or cigar
into a pile Of oil soaked waste. and thar
thIs started the blaze We have a verJ' strict
rule against smoking. and try our best 10
.nforce IL, but sometimes the rule is
broken in spite Of our efforts. II is barely
possple that the fire may have started from
ST overheated journal. but this is highly
Improbable. because the overheating OF a
journal is always detected before II reaches
the danger point. 4
NO precaution known TO mining science |
y,as omitted by us at this mine in our en-
d4avor to protect life. For ten years we
haven't had a serious accident there. More |
than once we have been complimented by /
the stab a1i4lOt' ''.eS oa the System or nre |
and ventilation that We main |
lain. We have In operation more fans. |
orcing fresh air through the mine than |
,he law requires and the water pipes for |
Are protection stretch 10 every part OF th.
nine.
Il simply cannot understand how the
-ring happened. The men on tie scene re-
,ort 10 me that two lines or hose were