Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-08-27
AWFUL DISASTER.
Boiler Explosion in q Basement at
New York.
THE BUILDING FALLS TO THE GROUND
The Ruins Take Fire and a Heartrending
Loss of Life ResUlts-BOdles of the Vic
Tins ShOekingIy Burned-The Dead
Thought to BE Fifty.

WEw YORK, Aug. PA most disas-
trous and terrible explosion occurred
Saturday afternoon at 1890 o'clock in
Park place, between Greenwich street
and College place, Just at the time when
the street was filed with hurrying peo-
pie and heavily laden wagons and
trucks.
Without moments warning whole
block of buildings swarming with busy
worl1men collapsed as the result of a
mysterious explosion, and an appalling
loss Of life is beyond all doubt
The number of the dead is variously
estimated at from fifteen to fully a
hundred and only thorough search of
the ruins will establish the full extent
of the calamity.
Fire added to the horror Of the situa-
ton and some of the bodies of the vic
tins may never be recovered
In the restaurant on the ground floor
OF No. "A, which was kept by J. Peter
son, there were a crowd of persons at
lunch. The number is estimated at
the time Of the explosion at between
twenty-five and thirty-five. Then there
were number of girls in the wash
room in the basement.
Trippe & Co., druggists at 20 and T2
Park place, also had large number of
employees.
First a small, white, vaporish cloud
burst forth from the ground floor of 20,
- and "a Park place; then was heard
dull, deep, sullen roar. This was fol-
lowed by an eruption and a mass of
brick, stone and timber was hurled
thirty feet heavenw ard
No more than a second could posi-
bly, have elapsed before the front walls
of 20, y and "A fell crashing into the
street The great walls slowly rolled
and swelled out with on undulating
motion until they gave way and in
moment there was not a stick or a stone
standing abeve the first floor between
the dividing walls.
The walls of the standing buildings
were jagged, as the bricks were torn out
in places. They did not retain the
slightest semblance of what had been
three seconds before an apparently
strong and well constructed building.
The mass of brick, stone and timber
fell upon the sidewalk and filed half
the width of the street.
Suddenly fire burst out in darl1ly
colored flames from the third, fourth
and fifth stories of that part of the
building on Park place next to Green
wich street, occupied by Lindsay's type
foundry. The floors and the other parts
of the place were saturated with oil or
other inflammable matter which fed
the flames generously. A murmur ran
through the throng that the build
ing was lost and the multitude shud-
dered at thoughts of the fate of the
occupants of the ruined and burning
part cf the building.
As soon as the flames were under
control the work Of recovering the
bodies of the unfortunate persons who
were buried beneath the ruins was be-
gun by about forty fremen, who
climbed upon the great heap of bricks
that filed the street.
After twenty minutes work the men
saw the dead boiy of man down in
the cap of brio, and then cleared
away the mass in "a astonishing short
space of time. At 2;2O o'clock the body
was recovered. 1t was burned and
charred so that the features were un-
recognizable.
About fifteen minutes after the first
body was taken out the fremen came
across another body of man lying
under a piece of the roofing near the
side entrance. The man was apparently
80 years old. His legs, hands and face
were badly burned
Other bodies were brought up at
various times the remains being fear
fully burned.
Thirteen out of seventeen bodies re-
covered have been identified.
The opinion prevails that less than
half of the bodies have so far been re-
covered from the wreck, and it is
thought that altogether not less than
fifty souls were killed in the disaster.