MINING DISASTER.

Gisborne Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1698, 14 March 1906, Page 2

MINING DISASTER.

DEEDS OF HEROISM,

By telegraph, Pres* Aes’n, Copyright

Paris, Maroh 12,

M. Leon, the chief engineer, declares that a fire ooourred in an adjoining pit on Wednesday. Walls were built in order to extinguish it, but it is possible some fissure remained, adm'ttiog the products of combustion into other pits, and forming an explosive mixture, whiob came in oontaot with the miners' naked lights. Fire damp bad heretofore been unknown. Batches of men were rescued until falls

of earth suspended work. There were many deeds of heroism. One explorerdescended fourteen times, bringing up a body on eaoh occasion. On the fifteenth journey he suconmbed. Near the foot of the shaft sixty bodies were recovered. Thirty were’• identified; the others were unrecognisable. Though signa’s were heard in one of the gallerias yesterday, they oeased in the afternoon. It is hoped some few will still be rescued alive, as two living horses were found in the vicinity. A great number of oorpjes were headless and blackened like cinders, lying in heaps as on a battlefield. One woman lost four sons and all her brothers.

The entire world’s pipis express deep sympathy with the sufferers from the disaster,

FIRE AGAIN RAGING.

SEVENTEEN RESCUERS PERISH

THE RELIEF FUND.

By Islegrafeh, Press A is’..., Copyright Reoeived 10.49 p.m., March 13.

Paris, March 13.

Fire is again raging in the Oourrieres mines, and operations have had to be sus« pended. rescuers perished. The Chamber of Deputies voted twenty thousand sterling to the sufferers. Mining companies seDt eight thousand as a first instalment of relief.

The Pope telegraphed to Bishop Arras his condolence.

English, Welsh, aid Scottish miners, the Lord Mayor, aod many others, have sent messages of sympathy.

THOUGHTFUL KAISER.

By telegraph, Press Ass’n, Copyright Beoeived 1.16 a m , March 14. Paris, Maroh 11. Westphalian miners were sen*, at the Kaiser’s instinoe, with special apparatus wbioh did wonderful work in extracting tbe dead from soma of the galleries at Oourriors.

A NEW ZEALAND RELIEF FUND

(Per Press Associate d.) Auckland, last n’gbt.

On heating of the mining disaster at Courrieres, several residents of this city have spontaneously forwarded to M. Bceufve, French Consul for New Zealand, contributions for the relief of tho families of the victims, and tho list of donations will ■be published, and any further contributions towards tbe’fund will be gratefully reoeived at the Consulate for transmission to Paris.