The evening world., 1892-01-21
seven CRUSHED.
Workmen Buried Under a Falling
Gas Retort
All Taken Out Alive, but Some Of
Them May Die.
Accident at the Consolidated Gas
Works, West Forty-f fifth Street.

They were all dug out OF the debris, bruised
and crushed, and several OF them are 80 badly
injured that 1t is thought they cannot live.
All were taken out alive.
THE INJURED MEN.
Following is a list OF the injured:
JOHN CALLAHAN, 1fty-nve years old, OF 503
Eleventh avenue. Taken to the Presbyterian
Hospital.
JAMES CASIsY, nfty years old, so badly hurt
that he could not state his residence. Taken
to Bellevue Hospital.
JOHN GANLEY, aged NIFTY years, OF 2l5 West
Sixty-tirst street taken home.
PATRICK TANNING, twenty-four years old, OF
$40 West Forty-ninth street; taken home,
severely bruised about the body and head.
MATHEW MuIRooSEY, nifty years old, OF
4b4 West Flity-second street. Taken to
Roosevelt Hospital.
RICHARD PINE, sixty years old, OF Eleventh
avenue and Flfty-ffth street Taken to
Roos- welt Hospital.
JAMES DoNoHUE, forty years old, OF 4l8
West Fifty-sixth street. Taken to Roosevelt
| Hospital.
ALL BRUISED AND CRUSHED.
| All the men were terribly bruised and
crushed, and many Of them are believed to
have sustained serious internal injuries
The two men, Carrisy and Pine, are the
most seriously injured. Carrtsy IL severely
bruised about the head, and It is feared his
skull is fractured. Pine is very badly bruised,
and has a compound fracture OF the left leg.
| The old retorthouse OF the Consolidated
Gas Company stands at the corner OF Forty
nth street and Eleventh avenue. 1t con-
tained eleven retorts, which are constructed
OF heavy masonry and are each about ten feet
In height.
| TEARING DOWN THE OLD RHroRTs.
They were built about twelve years ago.
For the past three weeks large gang Of
laborers, numbering about seventy-nve men.
has been engaged In tearing down these old
retorts for the purpose OF replacing them
with new ones
John d. and d. E. Crimmins, and the work
was being done under the supervision Of Supt.
Crowell, OF the Gas Company's works.
Seven OF the retorts had already been de.
molished. The men were ut work this MORN
ing with their picks and crowbars, hacking
away at the solid masonry, when all at once
there was rrightful crash.
BURIED UNDER FALLING BRICKS.
The entire excavation was filled with
clouds OF dust, and loud screams came from
the men who were ut work there They
rushed out, covered with dust, into the
street.
When the first excitement was over 1t was
found that four OF the old retUrts had COL
lapsed, and that q part OF the wall OF the
building had fallen.
1t was evident that several men had been
buried in the ruins, but exactly how many
could not be asCertained.
The workmen who had escaped at once
Jumped into the ruins and began to dig for
their companions, whose agonizing cries for
trying to rescue them.
sPEECHLKss WHEN TAKEN OUT
In a few minutes several were taken out
but they were 30 badly injured that they
could not speak at FIRST Within an hour Ill
seven OF the men who had been buried in the
crash had been taken out and sent either to
their homes or to the hospitals.
EXCITEMENT IN THE VICINITY.
The accident created tremendous excite
ment in the neighborhood, whore most OF the
laDorers employed In the works lived, and
the rumor being spread that twenty or thirty
people had been killed by the falling walls
the wives and families OF the laborers locked
to the spot in the widest state OF excitement
AxBULANcBs SUMMONED.
AS soon as the crash was heard man who
was passing by At the time ran up TO Police
man Hackett, OF the West Forty-seventt
street station, who was several blocks ava!
on Eleventh avenue, and told him what hat
happened.
He then ran info Rothman's Brewery al
Forty-sixth street and Eleventh avenue and
telcphoned to Roosevelt the Presbyterian
and Bellevue Hospitals for a'nbulanoes.
Five ambulanccs Immediately responded
and they were all needed.
oncer Hackett ran 10 the station and re-
ported the accident Sergt. Boyle sent out al
once all the reserves, and the policemen
helped the laborcrs to clear away the debris
and rescue the buried men.
The streets In the nelghbOrhood were soor
crowded and the police had hard work tC
keep the people back, such was the excite
mcnt that prevailed and the anxiety OF the
women TO go to their husbands, who had beer
hurt.
SCENE or THE ACCIDENT.
The retort house where the accident oc
CURED, Is on the south side OF FOrty-nftl
street, and Ia 175 feet long and 100 feet wide
The part which fell in had been completely
undermined by the workmen, and the weigh
OF the heavy walls caused them 10 sink in.
THH MEN ALONE AT PAuLT
, Engineer Bradley, Of the Consolidated Ga
Company, told an EVENING WORLD reporter
that the men were AZ work under the arches
OF the returt against orders.
at was foolish risk they took, and no on'
else was to blame" he said. 1.-The accien
! could not have been roreseen by the COmpa
ny's officers, and white the retorts wer'
old aud the bricKwork decayed no fault car
be found, as we were In the act OF repairing
them"