Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-12-10
FLAMES IN A Big STATION
Pennsylvania's Jersey City
Depot Quilted by Fire.
CAUSED BY A GAS EXPLOSION
A Fire Box Causes Disastrous
Delay.
The Flames Swept Through tho Fine
New Railroad Sheds, Doing Great DAM
age--AIany ofices Burned out--Bag-
gage All Saved.

jersey Cry, N. j., Dec. Am explo
sion of gas caused disasterons hre at thu
Jersey City terminal of the Pennsylvana
railroad this morning The company re-
Gently completed the magnificent train
shed on the grade with the steel elevated
road, constructed from the river to Bergen
Kill, and WAS constructing new waiting
rooms and lerry.houses 10 correspond
The old wooden Office building that Cen
erai Superintendent + Wolcott Jackson
occupied in the ferry house was turned
into temporary exit for east-bound train
passengers, when the officials moved their
desks into the iive-story brick building
fronting on Exchange Place. 1t was In
this exit that the explosion occurred.
The tearing down Of the STRUCTURE and
the constant Earring caused by ferry boats
entering the slips about 1000 feet away
are supposed TO have broken or discon.
nected gas pipe close to the man dis
tfibntinS meter
The explosion took place at 3 ~ o'clock
and the surrounding woodwork was in
stantly abaze Policeman Fred Hellmer,
who was on duty AZ the ferry house, saw
the flash Of the explosion and RAN TO fire
box II. in Exchange Place 1t failed to
work and precious moments were lost In
learning lis condition Hollmer then
hustled into the Western Union tciesT aph
Office and yelling to Night Manager Bitter
70 telegraph to fire headquarters, ran 10
fire BOX r. at the corner OF Greene and
Montgomery streets, two blocks away
Tie FIRE department responded quickly
TO the three alarms sent out, and the entire
apparatus ot the city aid harbor got IL
work The result was that the river end
OF the terminals, including the ferry slips
were bt slightly damaged. On the IN.
terror portion of the depot building the
tiaines spread rapidly, The flames from
the old office building mounted upwards
until the wooden railins and sides of tho
unfinished waiting rooms were abiaze
The tire was then carried along huge
yellow pine pipe casing to the new oiiire
structure This consisted of five soliily
built structures. brick, LOO by IS feet, and
i've stories high. The second aoor Of the
easterly building was used as a baggage
room, the others being merely bare walls.
Night Baggagemaster Roman and his as
sistants succeeded in saving all the trunks.
The four floors above the baggage room
and the two buildings OH the west were
Quilted.
General Superintendent Jackson's office
with those OF Division Superintendent
Crawford, Chief Engineer Brooks and
numerous other officials of the road was
cleaned out.
From the Office buildings the Gre spread
to the train sheds in the rear and attacked
the wooden interior ceiling. About 100
feet of the ceiling was destroyed and
hundreds Of the glass roof lights fell in
fragments upon the concrete platform
below.
A dozen lines of hose were brought into
play and the train shed was saved from
further damage, Fire Chief John l'ren-
nan, Of the PENNSYLVANIA Company
directed this portion Of the work. The
flames were under control by 90 o'clock
and at $50 O'Clock the first ferry boat from
Cortland street succeeded in landing at the
upper slip
The removal of the house from the road
WAY In Exchange Place raised the blockade
against horse car traffic from the outlying
sections of the city. Hundreds OF business
men were forced 10 walk TO the PavoLia,
Chambers and Twenty-third street ferry
during the interim.
The Philadelphia and Washington ex.
press, leaving Jersey City AT $40 O'clock,
a. m, pulled ont Of the depot 10 minutes
late. When daylight dawncd ii was seen
that the injured two-thirds of the office
building block had escaped destruction by
the barrier formed by the iron doors in
the connecting Railways.
The train dispatchers' offices escaped the
fire, and the railroad wires were again
working BY O'Clock. Trains are running
regularly.
Contractor James Whelahean had n
force Of men at work fitting up temporary
offices by the same time. Trains are run.
ming on time and the ferries are carrying
the usual throngs.
The loss on the office building is esti-
mated ut $4,000 and,on the train shed and
ferry house at 5000 This is more than
covered by insurance IN the Pennsylvania
Company's floating policies.