The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1912-03-20
TIE PEOPLE OF SAN ANTONIO
THOUGHT TAA~ TEARTHQUAKE
HAD OCCURRED MONDAY.
BIG BUILDINGS SHOOK
Heaviest Loss OF Life in san Antonio
Since Battle of the Alamo-Parts
Of Bodies Scattered Over Two
8lock5

San An.onio, Texas, March %
san Antonio is recovering slowly
from the shock of the explosion OF
a locomotive boiler early on ,he
morning OF March Is, when twenty
six men we're killed. many of them
blown 10 atoms, and more than forty
were Injured, a number of whom
probably will die. Never since the
battle OF the Alamo, seyenty-siX
years ago, when several hundred Tex
ans died at the hands of Mexican
| invaders rather than surrender, has
such a disaster, involving such heavy
| loss ot life, fallen on the city. 1t
seems impossible to many that the
explosion OF locomotive boiler
could have wrought such damage
! but many OF the deaths were caused
by the crumbling of the walls Of
| the roundhouse of the Galveston, Har-
rsburg & san Antonio Railroad Co.,
and the fall OF its heavy roof, the
engine having just been taken from
the building and halted in the yard
only a few feet distant when the
crash came.
The shock Of the explosion shook
the city, causing big office buildings
20 tremble, and it was thought by
many that an earthquake had occurr.
ed, although San Antonio is known
ia be tar distant from the region OF
earthquakes. A heavy ledger tina;
had been placed on window ledge
in a room on the seventh floor oi
one OF the office buildings was shak
en- from the sill and fell with a
crash 10 the pavement below, just
missing several persons standing
there Window panes were broken
two miles from the scene of the
explosion. BY that mysterious mes.
senger that seems TO carry bad news
almost as fast as light travels, the
news of the explosion quickly spread
and within five minutes hundreds of
citizens and nearly every physician
and every hospital ambulance and
| undertaking wagon were hurrying
toward the railroad yards 10 render
such assistance as might be posi-,
Bile.
Passenger engine 70i was one of
the giant locomotives in the service
OF the Southern Pacific Company.
Its engineer Walter Joran, was a
veteran in the service of the conf
pany. He was SO years OF age, ma
tive of Birmingham, England, came
to the United States at the age of
: and mas been employed by the
railroad for the last thirty-seven
years. A fireman assigned to go oar
with the engine was late in report
ing for duty and was hurryiug TO
the yards when the explosion took
place His substitute, who had as
sisted in taking the engine from the
rouudhouse, was killed Engine 7Ot
had been in thine round house about
TWO weeks for a thorough overhaul
ing. Only a few days ago a sever
cold water test of 250 pounds pres
sure 10 the square inch was made
and not sroan emitted under that
ordeal
Parts of bodies were scattered over
an area of about two blocks. rae
forearm of a man was driven through
a tin roof more than one blocl. dis
tant The crown sheet ana steel
dome of the locomotive, shapcless
mass Of metal weighing between
10000 and $4,000 pounds, was hurl-
ed nearly two blocks and in falling
crushed two great trees like egg
shells.
Immediately after the disaster a
call for firemen was sent in and sey-
eral companies responded The med |
ical corps from Fort sam Houston. f.
about one mile distant, hurried 10
the scene, and later Brigadier General |
Joseph W. Duncan, commanding the
department of Texas, sent a COM