1900 - Coalmininghistorypa.org

176 REPORT OF THE BUREAU OF MINES. Off. Doc.
it could only be removed by barring. While barring, a piece of
the top bench fell upon him, inflicting a lacerated wound which resulted
in his death. When I entered the breast to investigate the
accident, I could scarcely realize how a miner of his experience
could have been injured in such a place. I found that he had about
three tons of loose coal near the face, which prevented him from
escaping. He should not have attempted to bar until he had first
removed the loose coal.
No. 14. George Chenitch, a laborer employed at Gowan colliery,
Nos. 1 and 3, was instantly killed on February 15th, by a fall of coal.
I made a careful examination of the place. He was working with a
miner in No. 2 west counter gangway, on the night shift. The miner
found the bench of clod loose, and tried to pull it down with a bar,
but failing, he drilled a hole in the bench and fired it.
Upon returning
to the face, the miner told the laborer to stand back while he
would take down the overhanging loose coal, but unheeding the
warning; the deceased insisted upon walking under the dangerous
bench, which fell upon him with the aforesaid result.
responsible.
He was alone
Nos. 15 and 16. Oliver Longenberger and George Rudolph, miners,
employed at Gowan slope No. 4, were on February 20th, instantly
killed by an explosion of gas. These men were working company
work with Edward Fisher and David Singley, putting up batteries
in breasts Nos. 31 and 32, east No. 8 gangway. Fisher and Singley
seated themselves along the brattice to eat their dinners, while
Longenberger and Rudolph started off eastward from breasts Nos.
31 and 32. They had hardly gone five minutes, according to the
testimony of Fisher and Singley, when the explosion took place,
destroying the brattice along the gangway, thus cutting off all
means of ventilation. All men inside of breast No. 20 were tossed
about by the explosion and left in darkness to find their way out of
the mine. It is remarkable that all the men (with the exception
of Fisher and Singley, who were only slightly injured), made their
escape over the debris and through clouds of after-damp uninjured.
Fiie Boss James Abraham reached the scene shortly after the explosion,
and found that two men were missing. He then organized
a rescuing party, which started out to search for the missing men.
After they had made several unsuccessful attempts, he started the
men to restoring the brattice, and at 7.30 P. M. the rescuing party
made another attempt to make their way into the gangway, and
pushed in until they reached breast No. 21, where they found Longenberger's
body on the lower side of the gangway. Another party,
headed by competent men, was formed, who explored the gangway
in seach of Rudolph, but failed to find him. They felt satisfied that
he was no longer alive and it was found impossible to remove the