OBIT: John Elvin LEASURE, 1935, Everett, Bedford County, PA

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: JS January 15, 2008, 2:12 pm

Copyright 2008.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/bedford/
________________________________________________

RESTAURANT COOK DIES FROM BURNS

Two Men In Kitchen Have Clothing Ignited From Exploding Gasoline and Become
Flaming Torches.

  EVERETT, April 12.--One man is dead and another is in a critical condition 
here in the Dr. Sipes hospital from burns received early yesterday morning as 
both became flaming torches when gasoline exploded, setting their clothing on 
fire.
  John Elvin Leasure, aged 21, died late yesterday afternoon from burns and
Norman Banks, aged 38, is in a critical condition.
  Banks is employed as cook in Ney's restaurant and Leasure was an assistant in
the kitchen.  The restaurant is open all night and early yesterday morning when
business was slack the men decided to clean a gasoline stove.  They took the
stove apart and just what happened next is not clear.  At any event, Banks 
rushed out through the front of the restaurant, his clothing ablaze.
  He was caught some distance away, between two buildings, by several men and
the burning clothing was torn from his body and the fire extinguished.  Banks 
was taken to the hospital.
  Cries were heard to the rear of the building and the men who happened to be
about at that hour discovered Leasure, a screaming, burning torch, several
hundred feet from the restaurant, in the direction of the river.  He had run out
the back door.  When he was rescued, the clothing was all burned from the body
and sheets were secured and he was wrapped and rushed to the hospital, where it
was found he was burned to a crisp from the top of the head to the knees.  He
retained consciousness until late in the afternoon when he succumbed.
  John Elvin Leasure was the son of Russell and Gertrude (Winesickle) Leasure
and was born in Cumberland valley on Jan. 29, 1914, but had resided with his
parents in Everett, where he was educated in the public schools and was employed
in the Ney restaurant for some time as an assistant in the kitchen.  Surviving
are the parents, residing on West street.
  Funeral services will be conducted Saturday afternoon at 2 o'clock in the
Trinity Reformed church in Friends Cove and interment will be made in the
adjoining cemetery.
  The restaurant is owned by Howard Hey.  Just what happened may never be known.
Banks is unable to tell but it is presumed that the fumes from the gasoline
stove became ignited from the kitchen range, also in the kitchen and in which
there was fire.  It has not yet been determined whether Banks inhaled the flames
from his burning clothing.  The damage in the kitchen was negligible.

Altoona Mirror, 12 April 1935
(Special to the Altoona Mirror.)

This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/pafiles/