The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-03-29
A MARELLOUS ESCAPE.
George Capito Relates Ills Ma perience In
the Falls City Hall Collapse.


Al II 30 the room where the children
were dancing was reached. Lewis Siuins,
jr., has for hours been moving about ia
agony in front Of that portion of the
wreck where the room has been. FOR his
wife and four children are there. When
the room was reached Mrs. SiInms was
found to he fatally hurt, Then, within
about fifteen minutes of each other, the
three Simms children were recovered.
They were unconscious and there Is only
n faint possibility of their living. While
the father was imploring the workers To
get his other child, u fire broke ont and
the work was suspended. The last man
was Hepden.
A thrilling experience was that OF
George II. Capito, who was present al the
meeting OF the knights Of Honor In the
lodge room Oh the top floor. He says:
"Thc first iDtimation OF danger were two
distinct rockings OF the building,
about which time "A window was blown
from the castings, and Immediately after
the plastering began To drop from the
ceilirg. A wild rush was made for the
ante-room, which carried me with IL, and
/ just reached the door when the entire
floor gave way and we were precipitatcd
to the basement. blinded and almost suf-
focatcd by a cloud of dust and crushed
and jammed by falling tinbers. In some
way the door frame fell with me and
maintained an upright position when IL
stopped, and was enabled To cxtricatc
myself from the debris and make my exit
to the street through the adjoining house,
whose doors | kicked in. AT once i re-
turned over the ruins with several men
and cxtinguished the fire then begun. BY
this time rain was falling In torrents and
the lightning flashes only gave moment
AIRY views of the position Of the ruins and
blinded everybody. The entire building
collapsed in the front and rear. OF the
east and west side walls nothing Is
standing above the second floor. There
| were nearly hundred members
present al our lodge meeting. Fully
| two-thirds OF those were ladies. Besides
our lodge, another order was holding a
meeting on the same floor with us. A
band was rehearsing on the second iloor
| and a party OF decorators were at work In
the large hall preparing for an entertain
ment. So far AS l could judge there were
less than "A dozen all told who got out un-
hurt, and the groans that issued from the
broken, twisted heap was proof that
scores were still there unable 10 escape"
AT II o'clock the opening OF a portion ol
| the debris of the Falls City hall caused q
draught whcrcupon the smouldcring firs
broke out and ficrccly spread. IL forced
the workers To desert the place. As sooi
as the fire gained headway the groans o
the imprisoned people became horrible
the watchers grew frantic and screamed
and ran about like mad men. The ter
rible suffering which they were unable ts
alleviate drove them 10 despair. Severa
lines Of hose were soon throwing water oil
the flames, but il was moro than AN hou
before the work could be proceeded with
IL was then carried on with much difii
Guilty on account Of the heat. Up To I:
| o'clock only about 20 dead bodies and >.
wounded and dying were taken from tli,
| wreck.