The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1889-03-01
TERRIBLE DISASTER FROM AN EXPLOSION
n Great Hotel Wrecked, Many cfMe fnsaafes
Being Crushed aud burned to Death.

n Great Hotel Wrecked, Many Of the lnsstntes
Bsiao Crushed and Burned to Deaah.
Hartford Conn special: About 8 o.
m. the entire city was aroused by n terri.
fc report that shook the surrounding
country, followed quickly by q general
alarm from the fire department. As fast
as the startled slumberers could don
sufficient apparel they rushed from their
homes and quickly a moving mass filed
the streets heading from every direction
toward the Park Central hotel where the
explosion had taken place. 1t was O
liorrible spectacle which met THEIR sight.
The late massive structure lay a mass of
burning ruins, amidst which the Shrek
ing forms of the victims could be seen
but not aided. The terrible accident
wa caused rs is supposed by the explo-
sion of the heating boiler in the base
ment, which caused the complete wreck
of the main portion of the hotel which
came down with a crash, burying in the
debris, as near as can be calculated,
some fifty of its inmates.
~Speechless and powerless the great
crowd stood with aching hearts and
dimmed eyes MS they listened to the
walls of the helpless pinioned victims
which rose high above the hoarse COM
mands of the firemen, who were only
able to get their apparatus to work and
endeavor to stay the merciless flames
that were feeding upon the dead and
wounded far out in the seething mass
beyond the reach of other help, some
plainly in view and others buried be-
meath the debris.
Ii is the most terrible catastrophe
ever witnessed in Hartford, and when
the list of the dead and wounded is COM
plete it will be found to be a horror
equal to any that has taken place within
the last half century. The loss of life
is believed not to be more than fifty, but
1t cannot be definitely stated, as the
night clerk, Mr.. Terry, ia among the
missing and his books are destroyed.
Nearly oil the help of the hotel was
saved. They occupied sleeping apart
ments in the east wing of the annex,
which was only partly wrecked by the
explosion. Some forced their a out
themselves and others were helped out.
The entire main section of the hotel was
gone, only a pile of brick and timbers
remaining. The scene about the ruins
was horrible. In the center of the spot
where the building stood were a man,
his wife and little girl. No help could
get to them, and they finally fell back
into the flames and died in plain sight
of the spectators. The little one cried
for help, but the man and ut
tered not a word, but embraced, and in
each others arms met death bravely.
AT the rear of the annex the shrieks of a
woman caused the flood Of people look
ing on to turn cold as they saw o young
girl lying with her body half across a
beam, n look of agony on her face. Fin
ally the support fell and she disappeared
from sight.
The shock of the explosion blew every
window in the south side of the Earl
house, which is just north of the Park
Central, into fragments.
Women with their faces blanched in
terror and strong men pale. with fright
rushed headlong into the street in their
night clothes.
The cause of the disaster was I'M
douhtedly the explosion of the boiler in
the basement. 1t was of sixteen-horse
power, built by Pitkin of Hartford in
1882, and vas inspected and approved
last August by the Hartford steam boil
er inspection company. The engineer
goes away ut midnight, banking the
fires. He has been arrested on a charge
of manslaughter. His name is AIexan-
der @. Suer. 1t is conjectured that
Gains. the porter, may have started the
pumps and caused the explosion by
turning cold water into an ~overheated
boiler, but as he is dead no light is like
iy to be thrown on this subject. The
shock was felt all over the city. Win
dows for a block around were smashed.
Out of the fifty inmates of the hotel it
is thought five may have escaped un-
hurt Immediately, leaving f~orty-ive to
be accounted for.
The search is being kept up all night,
the force ut work at 2 n. m. being larger
than at any previous time. A charred
body thought to be that of Mr.. Whitney
has been found.
Summary, 2 n. M: Dead, eighteen;
at the hospital, ten; known to be in the
ruins. four.