The Boston Daily Globe Massachusetts Aug. 21, 1895 None Escaped Explosion At The Steel Works Shook Braddock Pittsburg - The fall of a "hang" in the top of the furnace H, of the EDGAR THOMSON STEEL WORKS, at Braddock, early this morning, caused an explosion which resulted in the death of eight men and the serious injury of others. The accident happened at a time when the number of men was larger than usual about the top of the furnace. Not a man of the entire number escaped without injury, and the majority were either killed or mortally hurt. The character of the disaster is not remarkable at blast furnaces, but the Edgar Thomson plant has been peculiarly unfortunate in this respect, as serious results from the falls of "hangs" at those furnaces have been frequent. The killed are: GRENGO, Braddock LUCKAI, 45 years old, married, three children living, Braddock PROCOPOVIC, John, 27, married, wife survives, from Austria MIKA, John, 28, married, has a family in Austria HAVILA, Stephen, 32, married, wife and three children survive, from Austria MIKA, John, 28, married, has a family in Austria CZOP, Joseph, 31, from Austria DROBUAH, Andrew, 35, married, Braddock KAFINOS, Mike, 26, married, his wife is in the old country. The explosion occurred at 5 o'clock this morning, when preparations were being made for the morning melt. The force of the rush of expanding gas was terrific and frightened the entire town of Braddock. Hundreds of half-clad men, women and children flocked to the mill to inquire the cause of the noise and the result. The majority were Hungarian and Polish women, who live near the mill and had husbands and brothers working at the furnaces. They crowded into the yards over the railroad tracks, which form a net work about the row of furnaces, and could not be forced back. They swarmed through the stock sheds, and soon the air was filled with cries and groans as the mangled bodies were picked up and recognized. The carelessness or ignorance of one of the top fillers, all of whom are Hungarians, gave the opportunity for the greater destruction of life, although the fall of the "hang" was the cause of the explosion. The refuse material which forms a hang had been allowed to accumulate until its size obstructed the free passage of gases generated in the smelting of ore. One of the top fillers dumped a barrow full of stock into the furnace without raising the bell, and this obstructed the opening still more. The top of the furnace was practically closed, in fact, and a force of men was sent at once to the top to remove the barrowful of material which choked up the top. While the men were trying to accomplish this, working directly over the top of the furnace, the "hang" dropped into the molten metal at the bottom of the furnace. At the same instant the gases, which could not escape because of the obstruction at the top, took fire and exploded. With a hideous deafening roar the blinding sheet of flame belched out the top of the furnace, striking the men who were scattered all about it, and blowing them in all directions. The materials loosened at the sides of the furnace by the fall of the hang and the explosion followed the rush of flames, shooting high into the air, and dropped back upon the poor wretches already frightfully burned by the gas. Furnace H is at the lower end of a row of blast furnaces, and is only a short distance from 13th St., Braddock, the Hungarian quarter. Within five minutes after the explosion almost every resident of the Hungarian colony not at work in the mill was at the furnace. The women were frantic, and shrieks and cries filled the air when the workmen began to search for and bring the bodies out of the wreck. Few of the workmen could speak English, and the scene was the more pathetic because of the inability of the workmen to explain to them that the persons they were searching for were not in the wreck. The women rushed hither and thither as the bodies were carried out, and threw themselves upon those which they recognized as a husband or brother. The killed and dying were taken into a building close by, which was turned into a hospital, until the injured could be brought to Pittsburg. Only one man was killed instantly, but the others named among the dead died while being taken to the shed. Some of them were dead before the bottom of the elevator was reached. The position of the men while working at the top of the furnace was such that they had no chance to escape, even if they had had time, and the heat was almost as intense as in the furnace itself. After the first rush the flames poured out of the opening steadily, and it was a hazardous task for the rescuers to go up and bring the bodies down. In addition to the eight dead, there are eight others who are dangerously injured, six of them fatally. The force of the explosion passed through the extreme top of the furnace, which was all that saved it from total destruction. General manager Thomas Morrison absolutely refused to allow the scene of the explosion to be inspected, and declined to make any statement regarding the cause or extent of the disaster. ___________________________________________________________________________________ The Lyon County Reporter Rock Rapids, Iowa Aug. 22, 1895 A Terrible Explosion Pittsburg, Pa. Furnace H of the Edgar Thomson Works, at Bessemer, near Braddock, Pa., exploded between 4 and 5 o'clock this morning, killing six men and badly burning eight others, not one of those employed about the furnace escaping. Some of the injured have been brought to this city for treatment, and the dead are in the hands of an undertaker. The following names are those of the killed and injured: Killed LUCKAI, Joseph, age 40, leaves widow and four children, resided at Wolfton HAVRILA, Stephen, age 32, married, lived at Braddock, top of head cut off PROPOKOVITCH, John age 27, married, living at Bessemer GRUCHA, James COT, Joseph, age 32, unmarried MIKA, John Injured: WARHA, John, will die SKOMDA, John, will die JURA, Michael, will die WAGOSKY, John, slightly injured DROBNE, Andrew, will die ZBORAY, John, slightly injured HARRISON, John, probably die KOPEROS, Michael, will die KOPEROS, age 26 and DROBNE age 36, previously reported among the injured, died while being brought to the Mercy hospital. Nearly all of the victims were Slavs.