Rensselaer Republican, Volume 16, Number 38, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 May 1884 — BURSTING BOILERS. [ARTICLE]

BURSTING BOILERS.

Six Persons Kilfid by a Steam Explosion at Dubuque, I lowa. fDubnqne (Iowa) Telegram.) ” , - Three boilers connected with the ooab and door factory of Carr, Ryder A Wheeler exploded with frightful effect. The explosion was heard all over the city, and it shook buildings to their foundations. The - boiler- house was completely destroyed and the boilqra thrown about in different diree- ' tions. The one that did not burst {was thrown intact a distance of thirty feet against the mill. A solid division wall separated the boiler-house from the mill, else the destruction and loss of life would have been terrible. The mill I employs 200 men. The corner of a dwellI ing near the boiler house was torn completely ont and several women injured. The engineer and two firemen were in the boiler house at the time and were buried beneath the debris. Two children playing near it were also bnried. The killed are: Milo M. Mellen, the engineer, aged 30 years. He leaves a wife. Fritz Villdanger, the fireman. He was a single man. Two children of Charlie May. aged respectively 6 and 3 years. Michael McLaughlin, the second fireman, was horribly bnrued and mangled, and cannot live bnt a few boars. Mrs. Margaret Wnlter was struck by the flying bricks, and badly cut Her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Albert Walter, and her three children were also injured. Mr. Rudolph Nealte and Mrs. Vaeglen, living on au opposite corner of the street, were also slightly injured. Nealte was knocked down in his yard. Mrs. Vaegler was upon her porch when a piece of one of the boilers came down through the roof, striking her on the head, kneeking her senseless. The main mill building had all its windows shattered, rffbe boiler-room was m stone structure apart from the main factory and was shattered to atoms. Pieces of iron, stones, and brick flew in all directions. The children killed were playing in a yard near the boiler-room. The woman injured occupied a house near the disaster. The house was blown away. Several theories are advanced aa to the cause of the disaster, the most plausible being a lack of water. The engineer, it is said, was running with but little water, as he wished to “blow off" the boilers to clean them ont. The boilers were inspected three weeks ago, and pronounced safe. The damage to the property is less than $5,000.