Norwich bulletin., 1913-01-15
Village Wrecked
 By an Explosion
MANY WINDOWS SHATTERED AT
 HAZARDVILLE
FOUR MILLS BLOW UP
Two Employees Killed, Leaving Nine Children FatherIess-Three Seriously
 Injured-Three Churches Damaged.

Hazardville, Conn, Jan. 1.-Two lives were lost, three other persons more or less seriously hurt, four mills of the Hercules Powder company, formerly the Hazard Powder company, demolished and considerable damage to property about the village done this afternoon, when more than two thous- and pounds of powder blew up in one of the severest explosions at the Her cules plant in the experience of the village.
 The Dead and Injured.
 The dead are
 Charles Blundon, aged g years.
 Jacob Stocker, aged 40 years.
 The injured:
 Joseph Trudeau, Elrick Trudeau, Henry Rosenberger.
 Nine Children Left Fatherless.
 Both of the dead men were married, Blundon leaving a wife and six chiI- dren and Stoclzer a wife and three chiI- dren. BlUndon's wife at the time he married her was the widow of his brother, who had also been killed in the powder mill. It was stated tonight that Blunden had not been an employe of the company for several years, but was substituting today for the regular man, John McNamara. He had gone to work today it was said, with con siderable reluctance.
 Trudeau Was 300 Feet Away.
 The most severely injured is Joseph l UUtdu- E1S IS q pOWQ6I team driver. O lie was driving hi steam some three hundred feet away from the building in which the explosion occurred. He was thrown from his team and pick ed up unconsc1ous- Tonight, it was said, he had an even chance for re- covering. The two others were cut by flying glass. Rosenberger is the en- gineer at the plant and was standing beside window in the engine room when the biowup occurred. He was showered with the splintering glass of the window.
 Cause of Explosion Unknown.
 The buildings destroyed were the press mill and three wheel mills.
 The press mill in which the two men killed were at work was about 300 feet from the others. The blowup start ed there and within ehirty seconds the three other mills had whir1ed slzyward a mass of splinters. Blazing bits of wood were scattered about and start ed there and within thirty seconds the put out before much damage had been done In each of the wheel mills were about 150 pounds of powder and con- Sfderab1y more was in the press mill How the explosion started will never be known The only men who could tell were blown to pieces with the buildings and all that searchers could find afterwards was some scattered fragments.
 The explosion practically wiped out the sporting powder department of the plant
 Windows in Village Shattered
 The mills are located in a ravine just back of Main street which is the pr-fn- cipal street of the village and here the full force of the explosion was felt Whole fronts of the stores including the window sashes as well as the glass were blown out and the entire street was filtered with the spIinters and glass. Windows in houses were brok- en and dishes were scattered about and in many cases smashed. The stained glass windows in the Metho- dist, Episcopal and Roman Catholic churches were shattered, the damage in each case being estimated at about $500. The worst damaged of the three edifices was the Methodist.
 Trees Torn, Broken and Bent.
 Within a radius of 300 feet of the explosion trees were torn broken and bent. For a distance of l50 feet from it the ground was swept clean. Tho public school was daIna ged to such an extent that the children had to be dis missed for the day.
 The explosion was heard and felt by towns miles away.