The Sentinel=record., 1911-08-27
.25 DEAD IN
 USELESS PANIC
EXPLOSION OF MOVING PICTURE FILM CAUSES A TERRIBLE
 THEATER RUSH.
Twenty-Five Persons ,Trampled to Death and Suffocated After the Operator Had Quenched
 the Blaze.


 Canonshurg, Aug. 2g. Twenty five persons were killed and more than sixty injured tonight when a moving picture film exploded in the Canons burg Opera House. Immediately rol lowing the flash of the film some per son shodtei "fire!"
 There was a rush for the exit and in q moment there was a writhing Iscreaming mass of humanity ten feet Ihigh in the narrow stairway leading tc the entrance of the theater
 The panic, it is said was inexcusa. ble.
 Mos, Of the dead were smothered.
 A majority of the crowd was com posed of women and children. In the fierce rush for the exit they were knocked from their feet and trampled upon. Others were thrown upon them land those at tha bottom of the human pile were suffocated.
 Nhen two volunteer fire department companies reached the theater the sight staggered them.
 Those of the assemblage who had escaped from the building and other lcncs.safore dpour, +o tho coaoo uora rusning about the front of the build ing. No person, it seemed, was mak- ing any effort to aid the struggling mass within the theater.
 The fiIemen pushed into the build ing and practically threw persons in | to the street.
 AS ARsy regained their feet they ran sRAeking in terror about the streets.
 When the firemen neared the bot tom of the pile, they began to bring out tie unconscious forms of the in iured and later came to the dead.
 The dead were laid in a row along the sidewalk. Relatives fought and strugg;eG to break past the guards and reach the victims.
 Within a few moments after the flames flashed and the panic started, ltho fire whistles were blown.
 Practically the entire population Of the town responded and packed III narrow Pike Street from which the fatal theater entrance leads. All oi Ithem were terror stricken and coulc lgive little aid. The only cool per sons were the firemen and severa members of the police force.
 John McCulloch. operator of the moving picture macaine, had just Ithrown the subject of the next series of pictures on the screen entitled "A lL.iule Girl Shall Lead Them," when the film exploded and the asbestos lcabineh was filled with flames. Fol several moments the assemblage num- bering upwards of 1,5O0, was wholly unaware of the accident and the ope rator heroically fought down the flames and succeeded in extinguish ing them.
 Then his hands burned and al most suffocated, he opened the dool of the little box and staggered out With the opening of the door dense cloud of smoke poured into the audi torium.
 At this moment some persons call ed "Fire" The spectators turned II ltheir seats, saw the smoke. jumped Ito their feet and then started the rusl flor the lone doorway leading to th' narrow eight foot stairway.
 At the stairway they eollided ant damned into probably 200 other pen sons who were awaiting the end o the performance to take the places o those who had sean the show.
 Immediately the narrow stairwa. was packed and damned ten feet higl with the dead and ying while tn crowds of townspeopie rushed tt ' the scene and added confusion to th' din.