The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1913-04-24

At Least 100 and Possibly Z
Have Persisted
THE BLAST WAS TERRIfl

The Few Survivors Who Escapl
Fought Their Way Through Fire a
| smoke-Rescuers Driven Back
| Gas.
Washington, Pa, April 24.-With
least 100 men dead in the mine and
possibility that the list of victims II
reach 200, scores of rescue parties g
at work in the Cincinnati mine OF G
| Pittsburgh Coal company, on the
nongahela river, near here, where 9
CURED one of the most disastrouS
plosions ever recorded in the long,
tory of mine fatalities in Washingt&
county. q
The exact cause of the explosion
not known, and how many lives wes
sacrificed will probably not be asce|
tanned for days. Less than two-scoz
survivors have beer rescned from tlf
800 men who were at work when tH
explosion occurred. Those men VIII
came through the flames and smoh
and reached the surface are sufferiA1
keenly from shock and fright and ca5
tell little OF the horrors below th
ground.
The explosion was terrific the foret
OF the concussion breaking Windows
in houses considerable distance frofT
the Courtney entrance of the mine
Before the reverberations had died
away 2 hurfying papic-stricken pro
cession was on its way to the matt
entrance, AS these friends and rel4
ttyes of the men underground reachel
the en, trance a smoke grimed and to
driven with his string q
coal cars came tumbling out into t9e
daylight.
He said he was well within the mine
with his cars when he heard the e.
plosion. which he estimated was e
least mile and a half FROM the sur
face. AS he rushed to daylight ana
safety he passed two dead bodies, oHe
of which he recognized as that Of n
Frenchman, Emile Leroy, who wash
well-to-do resident of the little mining
town.
The alarm was sounded all up aud
down the river valley, and within ~
short time came scores of WORKER
rom other mines. volunteering fr
places on the rescue parties whi[h'
we're organized with all possible sped
On their first entrance into the w0[
ngs the rescuers were driven bo@k3
~ the smoke and fumes which an
he passages. The force Of the ez;r
lio4 had seriously DANA g6d she faI !
hu5u the naeHs~ ~: n
nm co the dangers Of explosion 81 d
alling coal and slate. Temporary re.
,airs were finally made to the air tyIss
em so that 1t was possible for tn
'escue parties to work in short shiftst
But thirty-six men have been rescu4d
rom the mine. OF these twenty m9n
at the Mingo entrances, eigft
1t the Finieyviile entrance and etgfs
1t the Courtney entrance,
Those in charge OF the rescue wo1k
have practically given up hope OF say
ing any of the 100 men at work on tn
eft side of the mine, all of whefn
must have been within the immediate
of the explosion. RappinSs
have been heard beyond the piles pf
debris which choked up three main
entrances of the mine, and 1t 1t hoped
that some of the 300 workers within
will yet be saved.
No dead have been brought out, the
rescuers confining all their efforts 70
the attempt to reach the men who
may still be alive. f.
The survivors who have gotten opt
tell terrible stories of the scenes with.
in the mine and relate how fire broke
out in places, adding to the horrdr.
The most amazing escape was that pl
s. T. Holmes, a negro, fifty-f1ve years
of age, who with his two sons was PIT
work not far from the scene OF the
explosion. Holmes was hurled to tAe
ground and his lamp extinguished. All
about him was piled slate and coal
He started to crawl on his hands and
knees Working his way along pain.
fully and slowly, the man literally tore
his wau out through small openings
in the debris, at times working has
body through holes SO small he could
scarcely make progress. He Travelled
for a mile and half in this manner
finally reaching the Finleyville en-
trance of the mine, where he found
one of his sons who had preceded him
The other son had been killed outright
Many English speaking miners were
employed in this mine and among thu