The daily gazette., 1879-04-22
A MILE OF EAST RIVER AFIRE.
The Bursting Of an OH-Pipe Supplies
Neto York Win an Uncommon Spec


NeO orr Wuh an uncommon Spec
| tdcie.
From the N. Y. World, April 21st.
| Al ii O'Clock yesterday people in the
city opposite Black wells Island saw n
big cloud OF smoke rising from beh nd
the Workhouse, and u looked as if the
place was atire. A crowd gathered on
the shore at Sevehty-sixtb street and an
f, alarm was sent to Flrrman's Hail. From
Police Headquarters the news went
down town that there was fire on
BiackwelPs Island, and frightened a
good many people. Con missioner Bren-
nan and Warden A llaire, who had been
at church IN the city, reached Seventy
sixth street together, Ignalled the
Iaunch and went across, followed i'm
inesa'ately n,s by company OF city firemen
Workhouse and all the other institutions
on the i.land were all right, bu; the sur
| rare OF the river between the island and
| Astoria Tor mile was afre, azing
and smoking furiously. The cause Of this
singular and picturesque phenomenon
was unknown for time, though oil
evidently was responsible for it. The
| tlde was on the ebb, and fortunately
there were few ships in the chanbel-
Several came within range of the flames
and were good deal scorched, and got
out OF the way as quickly a. posi- ble.-
n unters Point appeared on inquiry to
be Responsible for the spectacle. The oil
refined there and prerai ed for the foreign
markets comes In considerable quantities
over the New York Central AMI II udson
River Railroad and Is carried from the
railroad depot TO the tanks at Hunters
Point through pipe. 1t is forced
through by exhaustion, the exhaust en-
gines and machinery being at Hunters
Point: The pipe is at the bottom OF the
| East River, which 1t crosses sh ort dist
ance below the Charity Hospital on
Cherry Island.
A About II o'clock yesterday the island
officials saw what looked like vigorous
waterspouf. The water rose high up In
the air and fell In graceful showers all
'ound. This was about half way lie.
| tween the southern extremity of Black
wells Island and Ravens ood, in very
short time the surface of the channel vas
covered with OIL, which naturally spreads
| rapidly on the surface Of water and
winch was carried down stream also by
the ebbing tide. This explained the un-
| usual phenomenon. The oil pipe had
burst at the bottom of the river and the
oil was flowing ip a big stream to rhe sur
face. Several little boys who were play
ing around the old Harlem Railroad dock
in RavensW ood, opposite the Work.
house, noticed the Oil and promptly
threw some lighted matches into The
river The oil igni ed, and in a few sec
onds the whole liver front was abaZe,
and the dock also caught fire. The boys
away rather more scared than happy
| hey were seen from the island. The fire
engines were sent for as quickly as posi-
BILE. Three responded. The fire on the
dock in rear of which are gas-works wa~
quickly extinguis, d, and in about quar-
ter Of an hour there was no appearance
of fire on the rlver. But just as the fire.
men were about to leave flames shot up
here and there along the channel and
they came back and cyan the extraordi-
nary task--for this neigh borhood-ofr Try
Ing to extinRuish an oil ii e on the water
IL is credibly alleged that they tried to do
this by pumping water into the river. At
any rate they were unsuccessful the
streams which they poured INTO the river
possibly to break up the continuity of the
flaming surface merely stirred up the
blaze Now and then famed by fitful
gusts of wind they heightened enormous :
| ly and swept the trees along the river
front scoi ching them here and there. 1t
was during this second outbreak that the
spectacle was at its best, though day le ht
spoiled il good deal. The rlver for up
i wards of II mile below the old Harlem
Ran lroad dock and away across to md
stream was all srurts OF flame tapping up-
wards into black cloud of smoke.
Thousands of people on the hills OF Ra-
vtnswoOd and Astoria came out to see
the sight, but New Yorkeis got look at
nothing except the smoke.
The oil continued to bubble up from
| the leak at the bottom of the Sea, and
and the flames IN that vicinity rose to a
great height. The island officials did not
trouble themselves. Theys eem to have
| been the only persons who had any con.
| ceptiOn of where the oil which fed the
flames was coming from. They had seen
| the divers putting down The pipe; they
knew what it wa, for, ard they saw what
at first they thought was water-spout,
but what they soon learned was an oi |
spout directly over where the pipe lay
The island guard boats were removed be-
yOnd the reach of the flames, and when
the keepers and guard settled down to
enjoy the scenery. The Long Island fire.
men kept up the work Of pumping water
into the river till they found out that it
did no good. Finally as the flames les
sened and rose but a short distance above
the surface tugs and propellers were sent
out to agitate the water. Some of them
were slightly scorched. They kept plough
ing the river up and down and in that
way succeeded IN checking the fire and
extingulsbing it here and there, thus
breaking the continuous sheet of flame.
But it was not until all the oil in the pipe
had risen to the surface and had mostly
been consumed that the flames died out.
This was fully four hours after the out
break. The quantity of oil lost must
lscorcbing of few vessels, The fences,
trees and the partial destruction of the
dock, there was no other harm done.