Haileyville, OK Gas Explosion In Mine, Jan 1945

NINE MEN KILLED IN MINE EXPLOSION NEAR HAILEYVILLE.

Haileyville, Okla., Jan. 18 -- (AP) -- Rescue crews sent word early this morning that they had reached the bodies of nine men killed in a gas explosion yesterday afternoon at a mine three miles southwest of here.
The crews had been working since the explosion occurred with little hope that they would find the men alive.
The nine men had been identified by highway patrol Sgt. W. R. Livingston as:
EARL GRIZZI, of Dow, Okla.
RILEY SMITH, of Dow, Okla.
HENRY B. BATSON, of Haileyville.
EARNEST SMITH, of Adamson, Okla.
JOHN BOLUSKI.
STANLEY KRUBUSKI.
MACK WILLIAMS, all of Hartshorne, Okla.
ROY TUCKER.
T. B. TUCKER, his brother, both of McAlester, Okla.
J. B. Puterbaugh, president of the McAlester Fuel Company, which sent rescue crews to the scene, said the explosion was believed to have been caused by a breakthrough into a gas-filled abandoned mine shaft nearby. The mine in which the explosion occurred was operated by the Bond Valley Coal Co., a co-operative, Puterbaugh said. It was located at the Craig Mining camp.
Heavy timbers blew more than 100 feet from the mouth of the mine when the explosion occurred, though the miners were working 2,600 feet inside the mouth.
Rescue work was slow and hazardous because pilings inside the mine were blown loose and had to be replaced before the crews could go ahead with their work. At one point they were driven back by mine damp.

Ada Evening News Oklahoma 1945-01-18
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Researched and Transcribed by Stu Beitler. Thank you, Stu!