The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1918-10-05
! 4. !. !.
MUNITION PLANT
IS BLOWN UP AT
PERTH AMBOY
Gillespie Shell-Loading Works
Were Largest in World
DEATH LIST is NOW 1877
Many Tons of TINT Were Set Off in
Series of Exposions--Plant
Cost 100000.
Gillespie Shell-Loading Works
Were Largest in World
DEATH LIST is NOW 1877

terrific explosion occurred shortly al
ter ten o'clock Buildings rocked
here and as far as New York.
Although unofficial estimates OF
known fatalities stood at 1871. Az
officer of the company EXPRESSED thC
opinion that the death list would be
much smaller.
Out OF all the confusion came many
tales of heroism and disregard OF
danger.
New York, Oct. 5.--The shell-load-
ing plant of T. A. Gillespie & Co., a
Morgan, n. j., near South Amboy, said
to be the largest shell-loading plant in
the world, was partially DIT
stroyed with, 1t is feared, large 'os'
OF life by series Of explosions begin
ming at 740 O'Clock last night
More than 1000 men, composing the
night shift of the plant, were al wort
when a comparatively light explosion
occurred. which put out all of the
lights in the buildings. The men drop
ped work and ran in every direction
from the maze of long, one,stQry build
ins-snite. -Yssifiies43hey- -,sefs ss1Ast isins
to get away buildings blew up on a J
sides, one after another and those
who escaped reported last night that
many OF the force had been killed OF
wounded.
After talking with survivors. who
were hurried in ambulances to South
Amboy, the police there estimated the
dead at 100 Some employees who es
: capped said that in their opinion q
large percentage OF the night shif
were killed or hurt.
Only vague estimates Of the dam
age could be obtained, because the
search in the wreckage, where explos
ions continued long after the gTea'
detonations, could not be begun las
night and no roll could be made of the
survivors. Who had fed from variou
exits, some men climbing the barbeo
wire barricade and scattering in az
directions.
Hundreds OF tons of trintrotoluol Is
handled in the plant. which loads thor
sands of shells of various sizes each
day, including nine-inch and three
inch and three-inch It's daily output
of loaded shells Is said to exceed tina
of any other plants in the world.
The plant consists of scores o.
buildings, many of them hundreds o.
yards in length, but narrow. In these
are trinitrotoluol melting watts. where
the molten explosive is run into pines
and poured by workmen from nozzles
in the liquid state into shells.
Although each plant is set at dis
tance OF 200 feet or more from ~
nearest neighbor, the explosions wer'
so powerful that when one buildin'
went up the shells and fragments o
concrete which II threw in all dire,
tions or the terrific heat which it gen
Grated caused the explosion of tn
trinitrotoluol in other buildings
There were about twenty distinc,
great explosions, and large numbe
OF smaller ones
The extent of the property loss, an,
of the consequent loss to the Amer
can and Allied armies, was as Difficult
to ascertain last night as reliable es
Inmates on the loss of life The valu
OF the entire plant. however, was pu
at $1S,O00,0OO.
The explosion rocked the surrounl
ing country like an earthquake Th
company officials declared 1t might b
several days before the death 70
would be definitely known. Rumol
that spies are responsible for the di