Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Phosphorus Burns Priest

The WiZard is In - 31-5-2010 at 05:59

Phosphorus Burns Priest.
The Rev. H. A. Zimmer and J. Meattia Hurt in Drug Store Explosion.
New York Times 6 January 1913

A large can of phosphorus on a shelf in Donato Rossi's drug store, 301 Rockaway Avenue,
East New York, exploded last night, and two men were severely burned. They were the Rev.
Henry A. Zimmer, assistant rector at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Brooklyn, and Joseph
Meattia of 115 Mott Street, New York. Father Zimmer was standing almost directly
underneath the shelf containing the can of phosphorus. He was glazing at a little wood
carving in the show window representing a Christmas festival scene.

The exploding can fell toward the priest's head, but the proprietor, Rossi hit it is such a way
that it fell on Father Zimmer's leg. In a moment his trousers were in flames. Those gathered in
the store rushed panicstricken [sic] to the street, all except Rossi and Meattia, who remained
to help the priest. In rendering this service Meattia received burns upon his hands, waist, and
arms. The flames were extinguished by Patrolman Thomas Mears of the Brownsville Station
before the engines arrived. The cause of the explosion in unknown.


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The Lord — She often works in strange ways.

entropy51 - 31-5-2010 at 17:37

Did this really require a new thread, or couldn't you have added it to your other spam threads?

4.92 posts per day, flirting with post-whoredom.

thereelstory - 31-5-2010 at 17:44

entropy, is that a sense of humor or are you really a bee och?

psychokinetic - 31-5-2010 at 23:37

I thought it was both. Good point though, we could have a chemistry related incident forum. We can all marvel and look upon such incidents in wonder and amazement.

I wonder why there was a huge can of P above the nativity.