The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-01-17 00:00:00

ishoos

periods on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday

At three, pm., At eight, a.m., At eight, am.,
Thursday, Jan. 12. Friday, Jan. 13. Saturday, Jan. 14
Liverpool .. 28.92 .. 28.05 .. 28.78

Holyhead .. 28.55

CASUALTIES IN THE TOWN AND NEIGHBOURHOOD

The wind came in fearful gusts, blowing a perfect hurri-

cane, and between one and three o'clock on Saturday morn-
ing reached its height, slates, chimney-pots, and bricks fell
during the night in all parts of the town. Many of the inha-
bitants, particularly in exposed parts, fearful of accidents by
the falling of chimneys, congregated in the lower apartments
of their houses for safety, and scarcely closed their eyes. As
far as our information extends, no fatality, we are glad to say
occurred in the town though several had extraordinary
escapes. In Gloucester-place, Everton,*a house was partially
unroofed. A house in Salisbury-street also similarly suf-
fered. Part of a garden wall in Brownlow-street, and another
in George's-road, West Derby, were blown down. A stable
belonging to Mr. Crosby, 'West Derby, was unroofed, and
the shed at the back of the Fish Market was blown away.
In Rokeby-street a chimney penetrated the roof of a house,
but we are happy to say did not injure any of the inhabitants.
A yard wall near the Zoolog6ic,l Gardens was blown down.
'lle severest casualty was the falling of a house in Epworth-
street, and as the details connected with it are interesting,
though melancholy, we will give them from the'graphic pen
of an eye witness of the disaster.

FALL OF THE CHIMNEY AND INTERIOR OF A HOUSE

Soon after four o'clock in the morning, Mr. Walker, a
reporter connected with this office, left his house, in Finch-
street, and went into London-road, to inquire of the police
whether they had heard of any accidents during the night.
He met two police-officers at the end of Gildart-street, and
they stated that they had heard of nothing particular in the
town with the exception of the falling of some bricks, slates,
and chimney mugs in different directions, but that they had
learned that a ship, supposed to be an American, was in dis-
tress in the river, not tar from the sea-wall. (It appears that
she was afterwards got out of the perilous situation without
much damage.) He walked with one of the officers up Lon-
don-road and Prescot-street, as far as the lower or west cor-
ner of Epworth-street, remarking that some broken chimney
pots had fallen close to the lamp-post. They heard no noise
or alarm at that time, nor, though they looked along Ep-
worth-street, saw the least appearance of any accident to
a building. They returned down London-road., At the end
of Gildart-street Mr. Inspector Morley came up, and with
officer J. Curry, (336,) was again proceeding up London-
road, on the opposite side, when a gentleman came up in-
quiring for the police, as he said he was apprehensive that
some accident had occurred in some house near that inhabited
by himself and family, all of whom bad been disturbed and
alarmed for some hours by the cries, from time to time, of a
man, as if under the ruins ; but from the violence of the
wind, he could not tell precisely what house it was, and bad
seen no appearance of a fallen building. The whole accom-
panied him to his house—next door, to the westward, of the
corner of Epworth-street. The gentleman was Mr. Relps,
and his wife and children, and a foreign gentleman, a teacher
of the Spanish language, were in the front parlour, and in
considerable alarm—the cries of some sufferer being heard
by them at intervals from about half-past one o'clock up to
that hour. They all went up the back yard of the house,
which is bounded by the high wall of a house in Epworth-
street on the east, and another—detached from it—on the
north, the gable of which runs westward. They listened for
a short time, and on Mr. Morley repeatedly shouting, the
cries of a man from apparently under ruins were repeatedly
heard, and appeared to issue from that on the east, which
being a single house, presented a high dead wall to the yard,
without any opening in that direction. Mr. Morley shouted
to him to make himself as easy as possible as assistance was
at hand, and the whole party proceeded out, and went round
the corner into Epworth-stteet. There was at the first view
no appearance of damage in the imperfect light, but Mr.
Walker and Mr. Morley soon discovered, in going up to the
house in question (three stories high) that the windows above
and below were considerably broken, and through these they
could perceive that the roof had fallen down from top to
bottom interiorly, carrying the whole of the floors into the
cellar, and burying the inmates in the ruins and rubbish.
The first thing to be done was to procure a light. Some of
the neighbours were roused, ane. ..andles were got, but it was
impossible to keep them in. Meantime it was suggested by
Mr. W. that a lantern might be got by knocking up anybody
in the neighbourhood that kept stables, but they were stated
to be all closed and to have left their premises. A man run
down to the car proprietor's, nearly opposite the Green Man
Still, but found no one there. A lantern was, however,
soon after brought by our reporter Rom a bakehouse in
Prescot-st. The fallen house was inhabited by Mr. Pace, an
organ builder, and his family, consisting of his wife and three
children. Meantime the outer door was broken open below
with a hammer, by Mr. Morley. The stairs are just oppo-
site to the door ; and, as some children were heard in the
cellar, an attempt was made to get at them by the cellar
door, but it was so jambed up with rubbish and wreck that
this was found impossible. The lower pannels of the parlour
door were then broken in by Mr. Morley, and Police-officer
43, (Davies,) got into a sort of recess found between the
cellar wall arid the fallen materials of the floors. The children
were close at hand, within a bed, which had partly turned
over upon them, forming a layer or stratum, but they were
pressed down pretty tightly by the materials above them,—
and moreover caged in by the portions of the beams
of the parlour floor which had there fallen perpendi-
cularly, and stripped of their plaster, so as to form bars.
Three of their naked legs projected from the materials next
the door, but neither their bodies nor heads were yet seen,
though they could both speak, and they did speak cheer-
fully and encouragingly to each other, as efforts were being
made to get them out. A saw was got, and Hughes began
to cut one of the beams that caged them in. There was room
for only one man to work in the recess at a time, and that,
too, in an awkward position ; and as the saw was a bad one
for cross-cutting, and continued to jam tight, notwithstand-
ing the occasional application of grease, considerable time
was occupied !n even getting half through the beam, though
it was of comparatively slender dimensions. A good tenant
saw was then brought by a neighbour, and the work, so far,
was completed. While this was going on care was taken to
postpone attempting to remove or tread upon the ruins piled
up in the front parlour,lest the superincumbent mass should set-
tle down upon and crush the children. At length, about a quar-
ter past five, by great coution and exertion, during which the
children did their best, in moving so far as they could, accord-
ing to the directions given them, one of them was drawn out
at the bottom of the bed by the legs—the face downwards.
This was Henry Pace, a brave little fellow, between seven
and eight years of age, who had shown great coolness
throughout. He hod been nearly four hours in the perilous
situation stated, but was not hurt. During the night he had
frequently encouraged his father (who was at some distance
in the ruins) to about again and he would shout too. I,le
was wrapped in a blanket brought by Mr. Sheppard, flour-
dealer, opposite, who paid similar attention to all the suffe-
rers—afterwards receiving two of them into his house—
and carried to the house of Mr. Inspector Morley, a short
distance off on the other side of the street. Soon afterwards
the eldest boy (Thomas, aged ten years) was taken out,
through the opening made by severing the beam, with
great care, as be complained that he thought his leg was
broken. When brought up through the pannels of the
door, it was, however, found that this was a mistake,
and that the pain he felt proceeded from a fracture
of the hip joint. He was carried to Mr. Sheppard's. He,
too, kept up his spirits. This little fellow cried out in the
night—" Father, if we get out don't take a corner house
again."
It had previously been found that Mr. Pace, his wife, and
a child, William, aged two years, was under the ruins at from
one and a half yard to two yards from them and rather below
them. The officers now directed their efforts to extricate
them, and to effect this entered by the parlour window. The
child was got out first. It had been lying on its mother's
breast, and after the accident " fought very hard with her,"
as she expressed it, so that she was much exhausted, and,
indeed, at times nearly stifled. The child was taken out un-
hurt. By very great exertions, and much care in removing
the bricks, timber, and rubbish, Mr. Pace was got out about
six o'clock. He was not hurt, but a good deal exhausted.
His wife, who was far advanced in pregnancy, was next got
out, with still greater difficulty. She was carefully carried
over the ruins in the interior ; lowered from the window into
the street, and conveyed, with a blanket round her, to Mr.
Morley's, where her husband was. She appeared very pale
and exhausted, and had evidently, from her situation, suffered
more, from inability to breathe freely, than any of the others.
She at first, indeed, fainted in the arms of one of the officers
(we believe Robert Hall), with whom were officers John '
Curry and Maddocks. The greatest attention was paid to
the sufferers at both houses where they were received. Dr.
Gratreax was sent for and was soon in attendance. He and
others advised that the boy Thomas should be sent to the
Infirmary, which was complied with ; and we are glad to
learn, that he is found not to be so severely injured as was at
first supposed—so that his speedy recovery is expected. On
inquiry yestesday morning, we learned that the mother was
a good deal recovered. Leeches had been applied to her
breast on Sunday, and her breathing was still considerably
affected.
The whole of the family were sleeping in the middle room
no stairs at the time of the accident. The two elder boys
used to sleep in the attic, but, on this occasion,their bed was
brought down to the room below, and placed under that of
their parents. It is, therefore, somewhat extraordinary that
they should be found so far separated in the ruins—which is
to be accounted for by the particular way in which the floors
gave way and fell, so as to launch them apart from each
other. The house, as before stated, is completely gutted
from top to bottom—the four walls remaining alone entire.
The partition wall between the staircase and the rooms was
very much shattered, particularly that portion of it near the
cellar. The whole destruction was caused by the falling of
a stack of chimneys at the top of the west or back wall of the
building, which had been thrown on the roof by the gale, and
carried all before it. The timber of the floors, &c., was of
a most slender description, and scarcely a piece of it is left in
the walls. The operation of extracting the parties from the
ruins was one of considerable danger throughout, the tall
shell of building being alone left without any interior bind-
ing,—so that a strong gust of wind would, in all probability,
have brought down portions of the walls, and buried those
who were assisting. Luckily. however, the gale had'consi-
derably abated by the time Mr. Morley came up, and con-
tinued to decrease as the morning advanced.
Great praise is due to Mr. Morley and his men for the
several
onffee irgehdbtobuer su s
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hisg e nht loeums
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opr r e
thes ent.
coolness and intrepidity they e,inced throughout, as well as
reception AI r. Roeflpthbes
sufferers, but it was found more convenient to convey them
to the places named. The numbers of the officers employed,
all of whom were most active, were 336, 198, 43, 494, and
303.

The houses in Netherfield-road, Everton, and the more
exposed parts of Toxteth-park, suffered more or less injury.
On the Cheshire side of the MerseY, in Birkenhead and its
vicinity, the only loss which has yet come to our knowledge
is that sustained by the falling in of the gable of a new house
in 'Wellington-terrace, as well as the destruction of an in-
complete cottage in a small street near grange-lane, besides
occasional breaches made in the roofs of the houses here and
there. A house in Rocky-lane, Wes; Derby, was partially
unroofed.