The Progressive West Virginian. [volume] (Williamson, W. Va.) 1911-1913, 1912-03-28

Will make address in the Court House Williamson Mon
day. April LIST at advocating the nomination and election
Theodore Roosevelt for President All welcome hear him.
EIGHTY-THREE LIVES LOST AT
JED MINES.
OF the Ninety-Three Men Who En-
tered the Mines Only Eleven
Came Out Alive.

| tame OuG awe.
Like the puff of steam from an
exploding boiler, a rush of steam.
smoke dust and after-damp gushed
from the mine of the Jed Coal and
Coke Company Tuesday morning, a
few minutes past eight O'Clock, leav-
ling in is wake efghty-three dead
men inside the mine, over two hum
dred feet balow the top of the shaft
leading to the workings. Eleven
men came through this binding rush
of deadly gases and reached the top
I of the shaft alive. but one trapper
boy, died within an hour from the
burns he had received when he
breathed in the deadly fire and
gases Although the official cause of
the mine horror has not been deter
mined, there is little doubt but that
litwas gas explosion which fused
| the dust, making combination ex-
| plosion.
State Mine Inspectors Nicholson
land Grady were on the scene within
an hour, having been at Huger when
news of the disaster came. Joined by
General Edward o'Toole, general
superintendent of the United States
Coal and Coke Company, a steel cor
p0ration subsidiary, these men went
into the mine, accompanied by about
| fifty men from the mines at Gary,
and Shannon With these men at the
! head of the force organized rescue
lwork was commenced and pushed
until Mr.. Nicholson was overcome by
the fumes of gas in the mine, about
flour o'clock He was taken out by
| and when he reached the surface he
|reeled around until he was induced
| to go to the company store where
DIR. Kell attended him. He will suffer
| no i'll effects from his experience
Immediately following the explo-
Ision the Jed Company's engineer and
Superintendent O. NJ Kunuff, ac-
Icompanied by number of men COM
menced to see what they could do.
They responded to the call Of the bell
from below and when ten men came
| to the surface alive it was believed
that hope for recovery of all could
be entertained The quickly-formed
rescue parties worked their way
through a small area of the mine but
were met with nothing but death and
destruction on every hand.
In a short time, for time went
quickly, the mine inspectors and as
sistants from Gary arrived at the
mine and organized force of men
entered the workings, led by Will
liam Nicholson, Inspector for the
eleventh district. Accompanied by
p. "A. Grady, Inspector in the twelfth
district, Gen. O'Toole and Superin-
Itendent o. M Kunuff and a large
force of men the workers entered the
mime. On the cage on which they
went down the snaft canary bird
was carried, this precaution being to
warn them of any dangerous gases.
At the foot Of the shaft the bird was
sent back as little further danger was
anticipated by lnspecto Nicholson.
The force of men, who were supplied
with safety lamps, brattice cloth,
timber and tools, found men scatter
led along the entries and they were
sent to the top to see if there was
any chance for life to be restored
with the aid of the pulmotor. 1t was
readily seen that there was no hope
for them as the men who were taken
out alive had been badly burned and
Iotherwise injured by the explosion,
some of them quite seriously. After
five dead men had been taken out
and one other had died it was seen
/ that further attempts to reach the
men alive must be abandoned. The
inspectors still continued the work of
locating bodies; but had to fall back
and keep the air, building brattices
as they went Slate falls of serious
consequence were met with and at
times it was necessary to go over to
the air course to push the construc-
ton of stoppings, which had been
blown out by the explosion.
| Evidence will be taken to deter
mine the cause of the explosion and
all will be presented before the cor
IOnar's in0Ilest