Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1916-05-20
BERNARD KELLER INSTANTLY
KILLED IN EXPLOSION AT
GlBBsToWN,i N. j.
Roy BOLTZ, ANOTHER MARTINS.
BURG MAN, HAS VERY MAR
ROW ESCAPE.
BODY OF MR.. KELLER WILL BE
BROUGHT HERE TOMORROW
MORNING FOR BURIAL.

shortly before noon hour at the Du.
| Pont plant at Gibbstown, y. j., when
fourteen men were hurled to death
and many others injured, one former
| Martinsburg man, Bernard Keller,
went to his death, and another Mar
tinsburg man, Ray Boltz, was slightly
injured about the legs.
Mr.. Keller was most widely
known young man of this city, and
his death came as a great shock to
his relatives and friends here. While
he had been born in Waynesboro, Pa,
/ q years ago, most of his life had been
! spent in this city, several years OF
which he was employed at the Inter
woven mills, as a knitter.
Young Mr. Keller was rle son of
Mrs. Mary Keller formerly of Mar
tinsburg, but now of Akron, Ohio
who with three sisters, Misses Hilda,
| Flo and Frances, at home in Akron,
and one brother, Ralph, of Baltimore,
| survives.
While living here the young man
| had resided at the home of his aunt,
Mrs. Fannie B. West, POI East Liberty
street. He left this city March s.
| His relatives here were first informed
of the tragedy by Joseph Gambino,
also former resident of the city, who
worked at the same plant. MIR. Gam
| bino was to have relieved a man who
went to his death yesterday at A
o'clock.
A telegram has been sent to Pauls
boro, n. j., where young Keller resid
ed, and the remains will be brought
tc Mrs Vests home some time to.
morrow. and funeral arrangements
made later.
Roy Boltz, another Martinsburg
young man, who was working six feet
from Keller, miraculously escaped
i b liz. 80 lliG 4latI- do htS VIII
panion. Mr.. Boltz was thrown over
a cart containing cinders, which fell
on him covering his body, so that he
escaped the explosion. lie was slight
ly injured about the legs and sustain
ed cash in his forehead, which how
ever, is not considered serious.
After his wounds were dressed Mr.
bered was that he saw a streak Of
flame pass in front of him, and thai
the next thing he did was to dig his
way from under the ashes, which say
ed his life.
Mr.. Boitz was also a former knit
ter in the mills here, and is the sor
of Mr.. and Mrs. Boltz, of East Char
les street.
Besides fourteen men killed il
the accident, several are reported
missing and it is thought that the
death toll will number many more
The age of the dead men range from
% to AZ.
According to the official statement
the disaster occurred in what is known
as the trintrotoluol nitrating house
and the flash communicated to the
nitro-benzol house. Both building.
were of frame construction and debris
took fire. The explosion wrecked tive
brick buildings used in the manufac
ture of hexite, about go feet away
. shattered windows in many Other
buildings within the 3000-acre inclos
ire and Jared the ground so severel,
that the shock was felt Throughout
South Jersey and in Delaware, Phila
delphia and adjacent portions o.
Pennsylvania.
This branch of the Gibbstown plant
is not counted one of the most dan
gerous from an explosive standpoint
but the buildings were remote enough
from the rest of the plant to limit the
damage to the restricted area. Off
Gals of the DePont company hurried
from Wilmington to supervise the
work of caring for the victims and tc
lay plans for immediate reconstruc
ton. The cause of the explosion is
not known, but officials were positive
in the statement that is was caused
by one of the ordinary mishaps in
cident to the manufacture of high ex
explosives. The trinitritoluol which ex
ploded is used in the manufacture OF
high explosive shells, mines, etc. !