Show adventurers club k the halifax E explosion by FLOYD GIBBONS famous headline hunter DONT believe it hurts any of us to stop once in a while and I 1 take stock to reflect how lucky we actually are one reason why im telling today the adventure of mrs B A henneberry of new york N Y its an incredible tale this story of how bow out of two hundred people living within range of an explosion only ten survivors remain of whom mrs henneberry is one mrs Henneber rys house was at 1406 barrington street halifax nova scotia canada because the large row of houses was owned by a mr flynn it was known as flynn feynn block the day was december 6 1917 at a m the henneberry children all five of them were getting ready for school the two oldest children had just left the house bouse and the younger ones were eating their breakfast A hundred yards out in the harbor directly across from mrs henne berrys barrys house several boats lay at anchor one of them carry carrying ing ammunition for this was during the world war the ammunition ship exploded mrs henneberry wishing to make sure the children had gone around the corner to school as was her custom went to the front door and opened it in the harbor she noticed a cloud of smoke rising she remembers hearing bearing someone say MY GOD THE BOATS EXPLODED then a blast of air lifted lif led her bodily she lost consciousness mrs ars Henneber rys husband had served overseas with the second draft of the sixty thirds on the day of the explosion he was in the hospital when he heard the noise of the explosion he said to one of his buddies the germans have got us thinking it was an air raid just then one ot of the boys came in and said no ben all the north side is blown up one ot of the boats exploded carrying ani ammunition when ben henneberry heard that he said my family is up there hastily he assembled some of his friends and started for the north end of the city all the soldiers and sailors were out to help them throngs 7 of hysterical people the city was roped in because all the people who had relatives living there were trying to rescue them shouting and yelling and nearly going mad with fear and anxiety so mrs henneberry relates if the people were not stopped some of them they would actually run into flaming buildings into this rush of hysterical human beings ben henneberry pushed his way making with agonized premonition for the unrecognizable mass of 0 fallen stone and timbers that had been his home when mrs henneberry came to after the explosion she was lying in the cellar of her home all around her she could hear people screaming for help she was completely pinned by the large timbers and foundation of her house she was lying on her back and all she could do was to move her fingers she says one thing and that only saved her from being burned to death her home was so close to the water that the waves washed all over the demolished building extinguishing flying sparks otherwise mrs airs henneberry says 1 I be here to tell the story not blot far off completely crushed and buried under timber and debris lay one of mrs Henneber rys children she could hear the child moaning ino aning and crying but she could not move to help her after a while he ahe heard the childs cries cease and she knew she was dead then mrs henneberry sank into merciful unconsciousness their five children all dead at three ben henneberry frantic with grief came upon the unconscious form of his wife and the scattered bodies of his five dead children of this I 1 simply cannot write no words of mine could ever portray this scene nor would I 1 if I 1 could suffice it to say that the grief stricken husband and his friends assisted in putting mrs henneberry on one ot of the numerous boats that were taking victims in relays to a hospital in the south end of the city so extensive was the damage that all hospitals were jammed victims were taken to the colleges for treatment and hospitalization mrs Hern henneberry eberry says she was taken to the college some doctors and nurses from massachusetts had been sent along and she happened to be one of their patients she was so badly hurt that she just lay numb for three weeks when she got out of the hospital she had to alk on crutches tor for a year while mrs henneberry was in the hospital her family doctor came into the ward and was talking to one of her neighbors speaking of mrs airs henneberry he be remarked how badly he felt alter after being her doctor for so many years for or he said he could hold out little hope for her where when mrs henneberry heard him say that she spoke up no doctor im still here lie he was the most surprised man I 1 ever looked at mrs henneberry mys fays relatives in massachusetts mourned her as dead on christmas day they got word she was still alive the best christmas present they ever got they said 0 service |