South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-09-28
Gasoline Tank Lets Go at
ArdmOre, 0kIa.--Death List
Will Be Between
55 and 90.
LOSS TO PROPERTY Is
ESTIMATED AT MILLION
Not a House in City Escapes
Damage by Force of Gigantic
BIaSt-MOre Than 200
Are Injured.

ARDMORE, Okla, Sept 2S.-Ad-
ditional bodies in the wreckage OF
the two city blocks, devastated by yes
terday'S gasoline explosion and fire,
today brought the total known dead
up to AS. a dozen others were miss
ing ana it was estimated the death
list will be between D and 60.
More negroes than whites were
killed A rooming house and pool
hall just east of the depot were de-
molished crushing IA negroes to
death. Five bodies taken from the
railroad freight house were burned
beyond recognition. The flames
which spread through all downtown
districts were not eXtinguished this
morning NJ r Adkins, a drayman.
standing three blocks from the depot,
was killed by huge rocks torn from
the wall of a store building.
A. c. Gould. a fruit peddler. driv
ing across the tracks near the depot,
was killed by the force Of the eXplo-
sion, his horse was killed ana wagon
demolished.
Ira Woods. the repair man, whose
hammer caused the disaster, was
found pinioned under "A pile of tim
bers. horribly mutilated and was iden-
titled only by a finger ring.
A spark from a workman's hammer
set off the blast that wrecked nearly
one block Of business buildings and
started a fire that destroyed another
block before II was checked. The vic
tins were crushed by falling walls.
or caught in the fallen timbers OF
the wrecked buildings and burned
when hundreds stood by and watched
them die, helpless to aid them.
Property Losses Million.
'"he property loss was estimated to-
day at more than million dollars.
The estimate was made after martial
law had been declared. and insurance
adjusters, working with the state
troops had gone over the devastated
section of the city.
OF the 50 bodies that had been re-
moved from the debris at l a. m,
only 10 had been identified. Most of
the others were so badly mutilated
that Identification was impossible. In
addition to the mutilated dead that
filled the store rooms on the edge of
the wrecked and burned district, more
than 200 injured persons were being
cared for in homes near the down
town district.
Not n house in Ardmore escaped
damage by the force of the gigantic
explosion. Windows were broken and
houses were dslodged from their
foundations. When the huge tank of
gasoline let go, and the flames burst
over the two blocks that had been
showered with gasoline. a wild panic
ensued. Men, women and children
ran about the streets like insane per-
sons. A dense black smoke covered
the whole town. Streets were blocked
with fallen timbers.
In spite of the confusion there were
many acts of heroism that consider
ably lessened the death list. Rescue
teams were organized and began
working within a few minutes after
the fire started. No aid was received
from outside cities until five hours
after the explosion.
No one slept in Ardmore last night.
Those wholWere not working i'm the
ruins, were standing 10y, waiting for
the recovery of the body of some rel
ative or friend.
Many mothers pressed as close as
the military lines would permit to the
department store ruins. tearfully pray
ing that their missing daughters
would be found alive Some women
broke through the lines of soldiers
and were forcibly dragged to the
safety zone.
According to oil men today. the Ard
more horror was the most disastrous
of its explosions since the discovery
of petroleum.