The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1892-02-24
BURNED IN A DEATH TRAP.
A Terrible and Fatal Fire in
New York City.
Thrilling Scenes at the Destrue-
ton of the Hotel Royal.


east corner of Fortieth street and Sixth ave.
nue., New York City, caught fire at o'clock,
few mornings ago. and in less than two
hours was heap OF debris, while large
number of people were burned, suffocated
and crushed in the ruins.
The bodies Of five Of the victims were
taken to the Morgue. Fifteen persons were
injured, so1le so badly that 1t was feared
they would die. :,
The scenes were heartrending and appalled,
even the most nervy and experienced police
men and fremen.
The fire broke out few minutes after 8
o'clock and never had fire better food. The
building was composed Of several very old
buildings, amalgamated into the Hotel Royal
some years ago.
vator shaft in the basement, at about the
middle depth Of the building.
It swept through the building like light
ming. The guests had no warning OF their
danger until awakened by the cracking of
the flames and by the su6ocating smoke.
They rushed TO the halls and were driven
back by the fire that even then was burning
through the walls and the doors OF their
rooms. They ran to the windows There was
but one stationary fire escape. Not all the
rooms were furnished with the rope escapes
that the law requires. Because of almost
criminal slowpess in sending out the alarm
there were no firemen with ladders to aid the
frightened people when they came to tho win
dows. Numbers leapsd out. Five were
killed instantly outside the walls. Dozens
more were hurt.
In fifteen minutes the whole Of the six.
story structure was ablaze. Flames shot out
at every window in the front half Of tho big
hotel and people In the street could see
persons rushing frantically to and fro on
every floor of the burning building.
One, two, three alarms were sent out in
rapid succession, and the streets and avenues
were soon filed with fire-engines and trucks.
Other alarms brought ambulances from
every hospital in the city.
From almost the very start the staircase
was impossible to the panic-stlicIen guests.
The elevator occupied only part OF the
shaft, the rest furnishing light to the stair
case. This was the only staircase rnnning
through the house, so the imprisoned in
mates had to go to the windows and the lire
escapes.
When the fremen and the police arrived
there was man, a woman, or both, at
nearly every window. They were crowd
ing, too. to the fire escapes, and many
were using the ropes which were hanging
in many, if not all, thu rooms of the
house. The women were screaming and
shrieking and the men shouting. They held
out their hands appealingly. They leaned
out and over the silIs clutching at the air.
Here and there was cool one, probably 3
dozen all told. They knew enough to use
the rope escapes that were in some OF the
rooms. and they clambered out and slid
down them. Here and there a man or
a woman leaped up on a. win
dow sill and stood q moment and then
sprang wildly of. Two men dived head fore
most from tie third floor on the Fortieth
street side. One fell fat on the pavement,
and was picked up with every bone in his
body apparently broken. The other struck
sidewise on his head, and his head was
smashed and crushed shapeless.
Two women leaped from one window on
the third floor on the same side. They had
stood q moment clasped in each others
arms. They jumped, still clasped together.
They fall apart, one dead, one unconscious,
ON the pavement
The flames were bursting fercely out Of
most OF the windows at the Sixth avenue
and Fortieth street corner Of the building.
At one OF them in the third story appeared
e middle-aged man Of fine appearance,
shouting at the top Of his lungs for help.
The walls around him were cracking with
the heat and threatened to give way at any
minute. The flames were ali about him.
Jump for your lifel It is your only
chancep' yelled policeman who saw him.
"Good-Dye all It will be all right in the
morning" y" was the strange answer that he
yelled back. A cloud Of smoke then envel-
oped him, and he was seen no more.
One woman with child in her arms was
stepping out of third-story window on the
Sixth avenue side. She held on to q rops
l.S o1i ND oil
ing with only one hand. As she
reached the second-story she lost hold
of the rope and fell. On the Fortieth
street side there was tho coolest man in the
building. He was fully dressed and wore
silk hat He let himself down by rope es-
cape hand over hand AMI landed safely.
A fne-loo8ng young woman, apparently
not moro than thirty years old, was seen at
q window on the Sixth avenue side. She
screamed for help. A fireman started for
her. She was about to jump from the win
told her not to. She seemed to be COM
pletely out OF her mind through fear. The
fireman had nearly reached the woman,
when, with q shrek, she darted back from
tho window ami did not again appear. The
flames had not reached her, and she must
have gone crazy to have thus fed from
escape. Her body was afterwarl found in
the ruins and taken to the Morgue. There
was nothing about it which would lead to
Identification except some jewelry.
While this tragedy was going on, man
about thirty-five years old appeared at q
window ON the top story Of the house. he
looked down into the street for moment
or two in dazed sort Of way, but
climb out of the window and sit on the
sill. A moment he fingered there, and then
he deliberately pushed himself off with his
hands. Some men with fire net tried to
reach the spot where he would fall, but his
descent was too rapid, He came down feet
first for about half the distance. Then his
body turned, and he struck sauarely on his
head in the street. He was instantly killed.
His body was taken to the Morsue.
Police Officer Daniel Glenn clambered up
a ladder to the windows OF the third floor
window. As he was descending the
ladder with his burden, the crowd
looking on breathlessy, another woman
who had been crying in an agony OF
fear from the window directly above,
clambered out Of the window and hung with
her hands to the sill till, exhausted. she re.
leased her grip and fell, striking Glenn and
almost knocking him and his charge from
the ladder. The woman herself was killed
by the fall.
There were les or LIS persons in the house
when the fire started. Not all their names
are known, because thief stole the register
when the fire first broke out.
At o'clock the Sixth avenue wall for
sixty feet from Fortieth street fell outward
with crash and a deafening roar, and
forty-five minutes later more than half the
Fortieth street front wall collapsed and
made tomb Of brick. stone, mortar and
timbers for the unfortunates who had been
caught in the burning building.
When the ruins had been cooled OF SUI
fciently by streams OF water to allow the
rubbish to be handled. a detail of tiremen