Allegheny County PA Archives-  Obituaries: Niskey, Frank, Sep 1916

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Victoria Valentine, <vvalentine4@comcast.net>, Jul 2008

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Taken from McDonald Pa Outlook 23 Sep 1916

The Oakdale Explosion
 
Not so severe as reported, yet, a deplorable disaster
 
The explosion Friday evening of last week in the Aetna Chemical 
plant at Oakdale while not so bad as at first reported, was, everything 
considered, the worst accident that has yet occurred in the Robinson valley. 
Five men were literally blown into fragments, a number of others in the 
immediate vicinity of the building were more or less injured and the 
property loss to the plant will probably reach four or five thousand 
dollars. The force of the explosion was mainly directed upwards, and large 
pieces of debris were thrown as far as a half a mile away. In the confusion 
that followed, the plant being in total darkness, great difficulty was 
encountered on the part of the rescuers and physicians, and the real extent 
of the disaster was not discovered until daylight next day. After all the 
wreck had been cleared up the five bodies were finally assembled, the 
records were carefully gone over, and it was found that all of the men 
employed in that section of the plant were accounted for. Following are the 
men who lost their lives:
 
Burton R. DODGE, assistant superintendent whose remains were 
sent to his former home at Bellmawr, N. J.
 
Samuel and John PAUL, of Sayville, Ill. remains taken to Chicago 
by a nephew
 
James TURNER, remains sent to Birmingham, Ala.
 
Frank NISKEY, buried at Noblestown on Monday.
 
Officials of the company arrived from New York on Monday, but 
after investigation could arrive at no conclusion as to the cause of the 
explosion which occurred in the building used for the preparation of 
ammonium nitrate, a chemical that is not combustible and is considered one 
of the safest compounds handled in the manufacture of explosives. It is 
claimed by the officials that there is only one instance in chemical history 
in which an explosion of this substance is recorded.
 
The shock was distinctly felt througout McDonald and a number of 
people in automobiles hastened to the scene, but admission to the plant or 
any information concerning the killed and injured could not be obtained. 
The people of Oakdale were greatly alarmed and filled the streets and the 
road to the plant until some of the workers arrived to inform then that only 
a small portion of the factory was affected.
 
The PAUL brothers and Mr. TURNER roomed in McDonald and were 
well known by a number of our citizens.