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Tuesday Evening, November 16, 1909
NO HOPE, COAL IN MINE ON FIRE |
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Cherry, Ill., Nov. 16 - Further efforts to enter the mine were abandoned at 1 o'clock this afternoon because of the great heat. It is believed that the coal deposits have caught fire and that the flames are burning out the timbers of many galleries. Cherry, Ill., Nov. 16 - Dawn today brought increased anxiety to the families of the 300 miners still entombed in the mine as a result of Saturday's disaster. WIVES PLEAD FOR HOPE Despite the belief expressed by state and government officials there is little or no possibility of any of the men ever being brought to the surface alive, scores of grief-stricken wives gathered about the mouth of the hoisting shaft and pleaded for one word of hope. None was forthcoming. With smoke drifting into the remotest galleries of the mine for almost three days, the men must certainly have been suffocated, according to President McDonald of district No. 12, United Mine Workers. He declared that the fire had burned out many of the timber supports and some of the men undoubtedly had been buried in the caving in of the walls and roofs of the passageways. THREE DAYS OF HORROR Not only would the men have been without food, but with no means of lighting they must have groped for three days through interminable passageways in total darkness to reach water, if water could be found at all. SHAFT STILL CLOSED That the main shaft could not be opened today seems assured. Train loads of water tank cars are arriving and preparations to fight the fire are progressing rapidly. George F. Rice of Pittsburg, field director of the United Stated geological survey, worked at the mine all night preparing to install a sprinkler system in the burning mine. MINE ON FIRE "It seems assured" said Rice this morning, "that the coal in the mine is now on fire. Gaseous odors arising from the shaft strongly indicates this." Today is the bimonthly payday at the mines. Nineteen thousand dollars to meet the payroll is on deposit at the Cherry bank. TO CHECK UP LOST Many miners will not be in line today. The clerks will keep a check on all who appear and in this manner it is believed the number of men entombed can be definitely established. Pay for the men who fail to appear will eventually be given to their families or relatives. |
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WORK OF RELIEF
E. P. Bicknell, Washington D.C., director of the national Red Cross, is here to assist in and direct the organization of the charitable efforts. It was stated that unless a substantial sum of money is collected, great suffering will ensue this winter among the thousand or more orphans and 200 or more widows left almost destitute. Albert L. Hopkins of Chicago announced that he had been authorized by the French council at Chicago to help care for the families of the entombed miners who were natives of France. Some women and children of those, he said, would be transported back to France by the French government.
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There is much indignation here over a report that troops have been ordered to Cherry. State, county and railroad officials are united in declaring that there is not the remotest possibility of soldiers being called and that the behavior of the people in the crisis is very commendable. The sheriff says order is so well maintained that he has reduced the number of deputies on duty. COAL ON FIRE No Hope of Breaking Seal on Mine's Main Shaft Cherry, Nov. 16 - Geologist Director Rice of Pittsburg took the temperature at the top of the burning mine of the main shaft today and the record indicated that the fire was so intense it probably would be impossible to break the sealed shaft today. Judging from the heat on the surface, the heat at the bottom must be intense. As there is nothing in the shaft to burn the heat comes from within the mine, 300 feet below the surface. The smell of gas is apparent near the shaft and this seems a certain indication that the flames have spread from the stables to coal veins. |
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FUNERALS OF EIGHT
The funerals of the eight victims whose bodies were recovered Saturday night were held today and the surviving miners and families of the dead filed through the streets behind the horses. Several dead were taken in funeral trains to Ladd, Ill., and other nearby towns. Officials of the miners' union took an active part in the burial ceremony. |
HOPE ALL BUT GONE Believed Bodies Under Thousands of Tons of Earth Cherry, Nov. 16 - Some of the bodies are buried beneath thousands of tons of earth, which caved in upon them, and it is doubtful whether many bodies will be recovered was the opinion last night after continuous efforts to recover them had been carried on for forty-eight hours and temporarily abandoned. The fire, burning with increased fierceness, early in the morning made descent impossible. Fans employed to carry fresh air down to the imprisoned men served only to enliven some sparks into flame. Soon the heat and smoke was so dense it was necessary to again seal the mouth of the hoisting shaft. Last night men below were locked in effectively. It is possible steam and chemicals, producing carbonic acid gas, will be forced down with the object of checking the flames. |
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THOUGHT PRISONERS REACHED
It was learned that 300 coffins had been ordered, half to arrive today, half Wednesday. In the meantime several scores of nurses rushed here anticipating work reviving the injured and half suffocating men. Nobody expected but some would be brought out who would be alive. Before the fire blazed again rescuers descended four times. The rumors circulated that the prisoners had been reached. "They are alive" cried the wives and mothers "They will be brought up pretty soon." RECEIVE NO RESPONSE But the rumor was baseless. Rescuers once got down to 300 feet and penetrated 150 feet into the bottom gallery but nobody dead or alive was found and no response to shouts. The miners had probably crawled into the farthest recesses. |
| FIRE FIGHTING APPARATUS
Cherry Ill., Nov. 16 - Fire fighting apparatus from Chicago arrived here on a special train at noon. An attempt to cool the mine will be made at once by lowering a water spray and turning the water into it. Comparatively few persons had called up to noon for wages due miners. |
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