Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 33, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1908 — LEAK IN GASOLINE TANK [ARTICLE]

LEAK IN GASOLINE TANK

Blew Up the Automobile and Seriously Burned the Five Occupants—(Rher Accidents. Lafayette, Ind., August 19.—With the machine running at a speed of 35 rqiles an hour the gasoline tank of a large touring car owned by Thomas Denman, a wealthy retired farmer of Boswell, west of here, sprang a leak to-day and an explosion followed, which set fire to the machine, burning two of the occupants, probably fatally, and injuring the three others severely. In the front seat were William Coffenberg, who conducts a theater at Boswell, and the driver, Leo Schuessler. In the rear seat were Ralph Sear, Mr. Denman and Warren Mankey, all of Boswell. They had spent the morning in Lafayette. The accident occurred at what is known as the old half-way house, two miles east of Otterbein, on the Lafayette road. When the men in the auto found flames all around them they jumped from the machine and fell over each other in the road. Their clothes were on fire, and Mr. Sear was picked up in the road with his clothes still burning. The auto, without a driver, ran into a fence and was entirely consumed by the flames. All the men were taken to Otterbein by Ray Kiger, a farmer, who lives near the scene of the accident, and placed in the City Hospital, where Dr. Learning attended them. Schuessler, Coffenberg and Mankey were able to go to their homes after their burns were dressed, byt Denman knd Sear were found to tie in a serious condition. The auto was purchased Mr. Denman only a few weeks agS.