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EXPLOSIONS AT RUSH RUN AND RED ASH
MINES, FAYETTE COUNTY, W. VA.,
By Chief Mine inspector James W. Paul.
On Saturday night, March 18, 1905, at 9.15
o'clock, a violent explosion extended throughout
the area of the Rush Run and Red Ash mines
operated by the New River Smokeless Coal Co..
at Rush Run, Fayette county, W. Va., and caused
the loss of 13 lives—eight in Rush Run and five in
Red Ash, and doing much damage to property.
Again, at 4 o'clock on the morning of March 19,
1905, a second explosion occurred which caused the
death of 11 persons who were then engaged in reestablishing
the ventilation within the Rush Run
mine.
The territory developed by the two mines embraces
an area of about 1% square miles, the main
heading of Rush Run extending 5,100 feet, and of
Red Ash 4.200 feet under the mountain. The
Rush Run and Red Ash mines each have drift
openings about 350 feet above the level of the
railroad and operate in the Fire Creek, or Quinnimont,
coal bed. At two places these mines have
a connection and their main openings are distant
4,450 feet. The main headings of each mine are
driven to the due north and the cross headings in
general are driven to the east and west. The
plan of operation has been the triple and the
double-entry systems with rooms turned to right
and left from the cross entries. In the Rush Run
mine from the ninth cross the main double entries
have been converted into three pairs of
double entries, or six parallel entries, which extend
to a point beyond the 11th cross, the limits
of the present advance work of the mine. On the
20th of March after the second explosion the first
shift of men entered the mine at 4.30 a. m.
Tbe first explosion was of the greater violence
and its force destroyed all of the wooden brattices
and demolished the majority of the masonry brattices
within the two mines. The force at the
mouth of the Rush Run mine tore up some of the
track, destroyed the drum house, set fire to and
consumed a repair shop and two shacks, set fire
to the roof of the fan house, and underbrush and
trees above the mine, which fire extended into
the country a distance of nearly a mile; blew the
hoisting drum and its supporting timbers, a weight
of 15 tons, down the incline a distance of 500 feet;
the approach to the fan was blown open and the
cover on an old air shaft was blown off. The fan
was not injured, but was stopped by reason of
the electric wires, which furnish the motive power,
being torn away.
At tbe mouth of the Red Ash mine nearly all
the timbers were blown out of the entrance for
a distance of 100 feet; the drum house was de­
THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN. 51
stroyed and the track was torn up and timbers
broken over the drum. (At this mine the drum
is placed below the track at the top of the incline).
A shaft of flame came out of each mine
which illuminated the heavens and was seen by
some ten miles distant and the earth was felt to
jar over a radius of two miles on the south side
of the New River.
All indications were that the greatest violence
of the explosive force had been along the main
heaBing of the Rush Run mine and that the dust
within the mine had exploded. One of the two
explosions in the Rush Run mine had set fire
to the coal and gob in the second left heading
which retarded the work of exploring the mine.
Along the main heading, timbers lying on the
floor of the mine were found smouldering and
when the fresh air reached them they became
inflamed and were the source of danger to the
exploration party until extinguished or carried out.
Along the main heading and several of the
cross headings and rooms was found a great
quantity of very fine coal dust uniformly distributed
over the floor and at some places the
dust had accumulated in a form resembling sand
bars in a stream and at some places it was eight
inches deep. In all sections of the mine the dust
was found to have been charred upon the sides
of the entries but only in isolated patches.
That dust was the cause of the destructive effect
of the explosion there is no doubt. Had there
been no dust within the mine, or had it been thoroughly
watered down, the explosion within the
mine would have been local and without the unnecessary
loss of life. Considerable of the mining
here was done by contract. The contractor,
generally, had certain places within the mine and
employed a number of helpers who assisted in
cutting, shooting and loading the coal. When
there was a good run at the mine a part of these
employes would often work at night loading coal
and at times cutting the coal with the machines.
In reference to the ventilation within these
mines and to the removal of gas the company had
installed two 11-foot Capell fans, one at each of
the mines, and nad built a line of masonry stopping
in the breakthroughs between the intake and
return air currents. There was regularly employed
a competent and careful fire boss who had
the reputation of giving his duties faithful and
efficient attention.
(Mr. Paul attaches copy of fire boss' report for
March 17 showing everything O. K. in the mine).
The evidence was conclusive that the ventilation
of the mines had been as near perfect as possible
and above the requirements of law; that the mines
were equipped with modern ventilating fans and
that they were properly attended and kept running