The daily sentinel. [volume] (Grand Junction, Colo.) 1893-current, 1913-12-17
NEW CASTLE WAKENS TO
REALIZATION OF HORROR
Continued from Page Ii

CONTINUED from Page IL
work, which had been carried on by
superintendent c. S. Meerdink was
systematized. Many of the miners
who had gone on a strike two months
ago had willingly responded to the
call OF the superintendent, and had
hurried to the mine. when they felt
the explosion and volunteered their
assistance
Twenty minutes after the explosion
Supt. Meerdink, equipped with an OK
ygen helmet had penetrated TO the
furthermost entry of the mine. While
the explosion had wrecked the tim
bers and piled huge blocks of coal
and stone in the entry, the superin-
tendent forced his way to the end OF
the long tunnel. nearly mile and n
half from the portal in the hopes OF
finding at least one man alive. lie
was disappointed. Body after body
was examined by the superintendent
ard five men who accompanied him,
but not a spark of life did they dis
cover. II was noon before any of the
bodies were removed. These were
the bodies of Joe La Blanch and
Frank McCann. who had been work
ing nearest the portals. McCann's
body was horribly mutilated and he
was listed as unknown" until to-
ward midnight, when friend iden-
titled him by ring he wore, and
cross clasped around his neck. From
this arose the error regarding the
number of victims. as Mccain was
Listed both in the missing" and as
unidentified.
Clothing Torn or.
McCann's clothing was literally
torn from his body by the force of
the explosion. His trousers hung by
just a shred from his ankles. and ev-
cry bone in his body had been brok-
en-.
Chemical House n Morgue.
BY night, when all hope OF rescu-
ing any of the men alive had been
given up. the relief gangs were put
tc work in more systametic man
ner The first aid" crews, equipped
with oxygen helmets were sent on
ahead to locate the bodies, while the
volunteers followed with stretchers to
bring the victims out The great dis
lance from the portal to where the
explosion occurred, made this work
very tedious The bodies were taken
to the chemical house, which had
been converted into morgue. There
they We're wrapped in shrouds and
transported to the temporary morgue
in New Castle, mile and Il half
away. Farm wagons, the floor COW
cred with hay, were utilized as hears
es and all night there was a steady
march back and forth from the mine
To the morgue.
The bodies taken from the west
entry were the most mutilated, while
in the east entry, there was hardly
bruise ON some of the victims. The
tr nf tha axnlnginn fprrifie
Some of the bodies were battered be-
yond recognition-eyery bone brok-
en-. Some of the bodies were fearful
~ burned-these being victims near
est the center of the explosion.
A Dust Explosion.
There was general agreement that
the accident was due to dust ex-
plosion-the worst possible explosion
in mine The explosion evidently
occurred in Room 10 in the west en-
try, that room being the scene of the
greatest wreckage. From there the
dust cloud ran with incredible force,
along the entire length of the entry
"a distance of mile, carrying death
and destruction in its path, then fol-
lowed along the east entry, and strik-
ing the air shaft continued its length,
until it shot from the mine in clouds
of inky blackness, visible for miles
around
The New Castle mines are known
for their gaseous nature, and either
q windy shot or naked light may have
set off the accumulated gases, caus-
ing the explosion.
Division Supt. ]. W. Cummins, who
has charge of this district for the
Rocky Mountain Fuel Co., is of the
opinion that dust explosion caused
the accident. The real cause of the
disaster, Will of course never be
learned.
1T appears to me as If it was a
dust explosion" said Supt. Cummins
to the Sentinel representative. THE
forte of the explosion was in Room
13, in the west entry, and from there
1t radiated in every direction. The
mine is equipped with the most mod
ern safety appliances and we always
believed it to be safe"
Mine Inspector Here.
T.. Il. Shumway, general manager of
Rocky Mountain Fuel Co., and State
Mine Inspector James Dalrymple ar
rived this morning on the Rio Grande
and at once went to the mine. Mr..
Halrymple Immediately began an in
vestigation of the disaster in an eff
fort to fix the blame. He was unable
to say offhand what caused the ex-
plosion, but he was also of the opin-
ion that it might be attributed to the
dust, until further Investigations dis
closed some other causes.
Narrow Escapes.
Kenneth Lewis, motorman and Les
ter Sparks, ''nipper" on the electric
car used to haul coal from the mine
were the only members of the crew
of SO working below the sur
face who escaped death. They had
just come out of the mine in the car,
and were about to start back when
young Sparks remembered that one
OF the miners had asked him to get
aila nj tho 0ffica for aal,rins