The Jersey City news., 1892-01-11
A RED HOT FIRE,
Swept Firemen and Spec
tatorS From Newark
Avenue.
Furst and Clerihew Burned
Out Pretty Thoroughly.
OPERA HOUSE In DANGER.
So We're "The Boston," 0lmstead's
and the O'Neills' H0me-What
the Losses We're.
OPERA HOUSE In DANGER.

A fire which rage from half past
eleven o'clock Saturday nigh5 until one
O'Clock Sunday morning. ba fling all at
tempts of the entire Fire Department
sooner to get it under control, endanger-
ed hundreds of lives. drove fully seventy
five persons into the snow covered streets
barefooted and in their night clothes,
and destroyed more than $751; worth
of property.
The first alarm was given by a MEM
ber of the O'Neill Association. He hap
pened to be near one of the front win
dows of the clubhouse and noticed dense
volumes of smoke eminating from tine
second story windows of Charles Furst's
dry goods store at No. SO Newark avenue.
His cry of FIRE took about thirty members
of the association into the street. The
alarm box at Montgomery and Gregory
streets was pulled and word telepboned
to Fire Headquarters from Police Head
quarters. Long before the pealS from
= lne big bell in the fire tower were heard
= hundreds of people were attracted to the
scene by the shrill shrieking of a dozen
or more Pennsylvania Railway engines.
Almost at the same momeut that the
first tap OF the alarm rang out great
sheets of fame shot high into the air In
the rear of Fursts store. Then the flames
grew brighter and leaped higher, lighting
up the skies for miles. Five minutes after
the alarm was sent in, the flames could be
distinctly seen bursting from the Newark
avenue entrance to the store. showing
that the entire building was mass of
flames inside aud that only superhuman
efforts on the part of the firomen could
save the block from destruction.
No. Engine was first on the scene but
before a telling stream OF water could be
brought to bear the immense plate glass
windows fell with a crash about the heads
of the tiremen, VINO were endeavoring to
effect an entrance. Tue crashing of The
glass gave vent to the flames. and the
next instant 4 huge tongue OF IRE shot
out half way across the street.
The members of No. Truck, who were
then raising ladders, were driven back
Hnd narrowly escaped injury. The heat
became SO intense that The department
horses becoming frightened and scorched
went planging madly about and endeavor-
ing to escape. Truck No. was s uck in
snow drift and could not bulge. A
hundred willing hands seized hold and in
q moment removed it aud several hose
carts to places of safety. These litlle de-
lays proved disastrous as the flames
gained rapidly. They spread to u. w.
CIerihew's tailoring establishment at
No. so, and it WAS soon doomed to de-
struction. The constant increasing of
the heat drove the fremen DacK and the
New Opera House. the O'Neill Associa-
tion rooms, and H. r. Ives store were
imperilled, this being Indicated by the
crashing of the glasses in the front of
these buildings.
SAVING THE OPERA HOUSE.
A general alarm Was tnen sent out, and
upon tbs arrival OF the other apparatus
three small steamers were direce ell upon
the Opera House and adjoining build
a Npr a
buildings each side OF those on fire.
These precautions saved the building No.
"a Newark avenue. occupied by d.
K. Omstead from destruction, and also
number OF frame extensions 10 Marshall
& Ball's clothing establishment. Walters
jewelry sore, Stones caudy store, aud
Fackert's gents furnishing poods house.
Length after length OF hose wts stretched
through the Newark avenue stores to
Railroad avenue. where score of brave
firemen were endeavOring to get the
flames under control.
Firemen fought the flames from the
roofs of the buildings occupied by Mar
shall g. Ball aud A. Waiter but were
frequently compelled to abandon the
hose aud seek refuge in the street owing
to the intensity OF the heat. Until half
past twelve O'Clock the flames continued
to gain headway; then the work of the
new No. Engine, in charge of George
Dingler, began to tell. Three TWO and
one-half inch streams were being thrown
in, and these had Il noticeable effect upon
the flames. and by fifteen minutes OF one
Chief Conway announced that the fire
was under contrcl.
IN oLMsTEAD's STORE.
Flames were seen frequently in
Olmstead,s store, but were ex-
tiugushed in each case before gaining
enough headway to endanger the build
ing, 1t WAS nearing once O'Clock wneu
was heard terrific crash that shook the
earth for blocks causing the front OF Ohm
st ads store to blow out and actually
hurlipg stacks of dry goods into the
middle of the street The cry, AN ex-
plosionl' WAS at once raised. A moment
later similar shock was felt, followed
Immediately by a third. still more severe
than its predecessors, and tnen the three
floors OF the Furst building fell with a
crash. Investigation showed that taere
had been no explosion, but that three of
the wall of he four story brick store
house occupied by Furst and containing
about $4,000 worth OF stock had collapsed.
No one was injure .abut the escape of
dozen frenen VINO were fighting the
flames in the rear was little short of
miraculous. The ncrtn wall fell iowa rd
Olmstead's store and It was the rush of
air that followed that blew out the front
of the store and hurled packages weigh
ing fifty pounds into the middle OF New
ark avenue. the east wall fell toward
the Pennsylvania Railway and covered
the tracks with DEBRIS causing delay of
two hours in the running of trains. The
COLLAPSE OF the north wall gave the fire.
men warming to ESCAPE. aud three of them
were scraln bling over he car tracks when
the fall of the east wall imperilied their
lives.
The collapse of the storehouse started
the fire again with renewed energy, but
the hremen were now masters OF the situ-
alton, and in a brief time the flames in
the rear were completely extinguished,
while, with the exception of the stnre-
house, nothing but u few frame extern
sions were charred bv the fl mes
PANIC AT THE BOSTON.
In the meantime cry was raised that
the apartments over the Boston were on
Are, and in few minutes the frightened
inmates were ordered out, ami then fol-
lowed the usual excitement of Juggling
the most unnecessary articles to places OF
safety. The City Hall was thrown open
by CITY Marshal Long. and within ten
minutes the halls were filed with crying
women aud children ia their nightclotnes
drenched to The skin, while hu bands aud
fathers rushed frantiually about bare
headed and barefooted endcavoriDg to
ave their ousehold furniture from de-
Ftruction. The flames In the Boston
Epartments were extinguished by the
chemical engine. aud no damage was