The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-02-26
WRECK OF A HOTEL.
Hen Women and Children Buried
in the Ruins - Sixteen
Dead Bodies q en-
Out.
The Cause of the Disaster, the
Explosion of a Boiler i'm
the Basement.


not ye! ascertsined. an i'm the darkness
and ruin men, women and children were
crushed and maimed aud burned by
flames. Ii wa at the hour when the twi.
light Of the coming day bad worn away
the night bit, AM while the city slept
the still buildings were shaken - 81 by an
.srthquake AMI The silent streets re
startled b. sullen booming. as though of
monster explosion. 4 ncment later,
persons In the section OF the city near the
capitol and ihe union depot were further
startled by the sound of a crashing walls
and falling timbers and aud the screams of
women and mems hoarse shouts from the
vicinity of High and Allyn streets, which
had been the site of the Park Central no
tel, but which had practically disappeared
Those who hurried TO the spot found
upon the site of the hotel huge pile of
stone AID brick and splintered timbers,
from which white clouds of steam rose up
In the morning twilight, streaked and
blackened by wreaths oil smoke that rapid
lv grew dark and blacker and more dense
Then tongues OF flames leaped here and
there from out the ruin and .rew boIder
and more strong uatii ;he ruin Was a roar-
ing heaps crate where solid masonry
held the fuel. There We're cries and means
and the wild screams from out the ruin
that made mems facss blsnch and their
arms grow strong with helpful impulse.
The streams OF water played upon the
flames were carried up in steam that
snothered all vision of the ruin, but the
daylight grew apace and 5000 the helpers
at the scene could see back beyond the ruin
the yawning floors of an annex to the build
ing which had housed the help.
With that unexplainable rapi lily with
which news of disaster flies through a town
the tidings that men, women aud children
were being crushed or burned, seemed soon
to have brough; the entire city 10 the
scene. The police pressed back the throngs,
not more curious than willing to help and
The 6remeu from every vantage ground
poured foods of water upon the rufus. The
astues hau been maytered and had sunk
down from sight within the ruins where
yet the water Kissed and steamed among
the hot stones AM K that rapidly cool
ed, burst aud CT ed.
Men Of the hook and ladder company
we're impatient, waiting only until the
ruins had so cooled as to render safe their
efforts iu the wreck and So a. soon as ros-
sible, willing hands set about the Hercu.
lean task of removing the immense mass of
masonary and the crowds waited and watch
ed with breathless suspense.
The first person rescued wSs George
Gaines, the colored porter. He was badly
injured and died soon after being taken
ont.
About7 o'clock Superintendent Law
renee OF the street department appeared
upon the scene with large gang of labor
-efs and the search Was actively kept up for
the dead.
KEEPING BACK THE CROWD.
At 9 o'clock Harris S;i6s, of Phil.del
phia, = traveller for the Barnes Safe and
Lock company, was liberated by raising
she timbers which held him down. He
Was only sligh,l. injured.
At 1880 the dead body of Dwight III
Buell., single, isxeler Of this city. was re-
covered. The body Was not mangled,
death having been caused by SUGGESTION.
in the neantim- the crowd of spectators
had increased 10 such proportions IS TO
greatly impede the work OF the 6remsn
and rescaers, and shout 10 O'Clock "two
elesens" VAS sounded upon the fire bell,
calling out the i've companies OF the First
regiment Connecticut national guard,
with .eomH,rndsbie aiscrity, aud = Gordon
OF guards soon surrounded the vicinity OF
The explosion, dsing excellent service
throughout the day and night in keeping
the crowd within bounds Passes from the
commanding officers WEIR required Ia get
through the iines, and that portion of the
city decidedly reminded pne of war times.
Previous 70 the calling out of the military
the police force had done good work, but
their number vss inadequate To the em-
ergency.
By noon kilograms of anxious inquiry
were pouring in from every part of the
country and friends of those supposed To be
in the ruins we're arriving on every train,
together with al ian men>e crowd of curious
people from the surrounding towns.
The lower door az the spacious wool
warehouse of H. c. Judd & Root was made
= temporary morgue. Here Coroner sper-
~, Medical Examiner Fuller and Assist
ant Wright, with other local physicians,
were in attendance, and here bodies were
taken as fast as received and opportunity
was given for Identification by friends
Those net identified were taken in charge
by the city and cared for in the rooms of
the old city hall. The injured were prompt
ly sent to the hospital.
The recovery of bodies was slow, owing
Il the immense accumulation of debris, but
At nearly regular intervals one or two
bodies were found during the afternoon.
When claimed bv friends, they were de-
liyered to undertakers.
Sixteen dead bodies have so far been re-
covered. The cause of the explosion is said
TO have been due to the explosion of q
large boiler in the basement. No engineer
was on duty at the time of the explosion,
the custom being for the night engineer 10
bank his fires at midnight and 60 to bed
He does not sleep in the hotel. This en-
gineer, Alexander Thuer, was arrested this
afternoon on an indictment charging man
slaughter and is locked up at the police
station. 1t is conjectured that Gaines, the