San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-05-13
BURNING OIL.
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY
THOUSAND GALLONS DE-
STROYED.
Several Explosions but No Loss of
Life Loss About 100000
Not Insured-A Fire
mans Brave Act.

man brave ACt.
At sos last night switch engine No.
"A blew the fire alarm whistle and
soon after the department bells sound
ed the alarm from box %, corner of
Medina and West Commerce. streets.
IL was turned in by Policeman Jones.
The department were tardy in getting
out, as a general alarm was not turned
in until several minutes after the first
one.
The fire was situated in the south
end of Waters Pierce Oil company's
oil house, corner of Monterey and
Medina streets, and before the fire
department arrived the flames were
beyond control.
A few men got out q hose truck
from one of the lumber yards and at
tached 1t to plug and tried to reach
the fire with the water The hose
was too short so they turned their at
tention to Carr's wood and coal sheds
across the street from the oil house.
Lying back of the oil house on q
side track were three oil tank cars
aud several boarding house cars, the
latter occupied by bridge carpenters
under Mr.. Sumpf Eogine "A got
the latter cars out but could not get
the oil tanks as they were already on
fire. So several box cars were taken TO
places of safety instead. Scarcely had
the engine left the track than the
fire caused the tank, on the south
end, which was filled with gasoline,
to explode. A column of flame fifty
feet thick shot up into the air for
about three hundred feet, where it
seemed to burst, spread out al com
mence to sweep toward the ground.
There were at the time about q
hundred people standing by who
started at dead run in ell
directions. By miracle no
one was hurt save for q few siDged
heads of hair and curly moustacbes.
some of the burning fluid fell in the
street, making it a "street of fire."
while some fell on lumber in Steve's
yard, where 1T was soon eXtiDgutshed,
with the help OF the hose, which had
been laid. The flames struck box. cars
and the L. & g. n. freight depot, sew.
eral hundred feet distant from the
house. During the stampede one poor
fellow fell on Medina street. He
yelled "bloody murder!' and every
thing imaginable and after regainiDg
his feet set up howl and kept it up
until he reached West Commerce
street, two blocks distant.
The fire was clearly incendiary, as
d;anAuanaI hxy hnoh a riuar II
Fuhrmeister, who was, sitting on his
gallery, on Matamoras street, about u
block distant from the oil house,
taking an after supper smoke and
short confab with his wife, WI hen look
ing through an intervening cattle car
he saw the flames starting up
He and his wife were soon on the spo
and discovered that the stable ad-
joining the oil depot had been fired
He ran to where the fire had beer
kindled and finding boards and STUFF
piled up kicked it over and then see
ing that the stable was burning, hi
rushed in and united the horses. On
he took across Medina street and tiet
it to fence, but as he saw that tn:
whole depot was doomed he cut TIT
animal loose and then returned to tn,
stable and let the others out, thu
saving them from horrible death.
AIR. Weaver, who Is. employed 81
walchman by that company and b.
Beitel and also Stoves lumber yard
had been to the place five minutes
before the fire was started and pulled
the watchman's clock at exactly
o'clock. After looking about and see
ing nothing he started up Medin'
street; before he had reached Beitep
the ire had broken out.
Firemen Watson, Rigan, Scott AM
Captain Hauck, of number 2, re
manned on the spot all night. Tn
former two were at the nozzle though
little water was thrown. This morn
ing Captain Hauck took an ak anC
went up 10 large tank, which was i
danger of exploding and at the risk c
being blown to Kingdom Come,
cut large hole in it ana let out tn
Oil, thus saving it from exploding
FIRE NOTES.
During the first part of the fire tn
department threw water on tn
flames but it proved to no avail.
The second explosion was not 6
large as the first but, several person.
were slightly burned by the heat.
The case oil in the cellar sounde
like musketry when the fire reache
It.
There were about $50, COO gallons
oil burned. The total loss wi
amount to probably 100000. No il
surance.
The gasoline tank, which was tn
first to explode. jumped into the a
and turned completely over tn
car wheels and parts of trucks are O
top of it this morning.
The fire is still burning. though bI
little oil remains, and fears were el