The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-11-25
DANGER IN TINE OF FIRE.
Few Savannah Buildings Provided
With Fire Escapes.

!
!
/ The Chief Fireman Calls the Attention
] of the Council to the State Law and
Recommends the Passage of an Or
dinanoe-Only Two High Buildings
in the City Properly Equipped With
Means of Escape in Case of a Con-
hagration,
Chief Puder has called the attention of
the council to the state law requiring all
buildings over two stories in hight used
in the third or higher stories in whole or
in part as factories or workshops, shall
be provided with fire escapes.
The act was approved Nov. IL, 1889, and
was made operative Jan. /, $780, 1t has
never been put in force in Savannah.
The first section Of the act requires that
the owners of every building more than
two stories in hight, not including the
basement, used in the third or higher
stories in whole or in part as a
factory or workshop, shall provide
more than one way of egress from each
story of the building, above the second
story by stairways on the inside or out
side of the building, such stairways to be
as nearly as practicable at opposite ends
of each story and so constructed that in
case of fire the ground can readily be
reached from the upper stories. All the
| main doors of such buildings are required
to open outwardly, and each story is re-
qulred to be amply supplied with means of
extinguishing fires.
The second section provides that the
municipal authorities shall require the
chief fireman to inspect buildings coming
| under this head at least once year and
report in writing whether the require
ments Of the act have been complied
with.
THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES CALLED UPON.
The municipal authorities are allowed
by law to pass ordinances providing that
the provisions of the act shall apply to
all buildings not used as private resi-
dences, three or more stories in hight
Owners of buildings who fail to comply
with the requirements of the act are
liable to a fine of not less than $25 nor
more than 500 and after being notified in
writing Of such failure are subject to a
fine of not less than S25 nor
more than 500 a month for each
month allowed to pa IS after being noti-
fed before complying with the require
ments.
Chief Puder is anxious that the council
should take some action and pass an
ordinance providing that owners of build
ings shall provide fire escapes where it is
evident that it is needed.
do you know" said Chief Puder to
MORNING News reporter yesterday, that
the MORNING News and the De Soto are
the only two buildings in Savannah that
have fire escapes2 1t is fact. The
Screven, the Pulaski and the Marshall
houses have no fire escapes. Suppose q
fire should break out in the lower floor of
one OF these hotels, and the escape by way
of the elevator and the stairway should
be cut off. What show would the guests
jump from the windows, with
the certainty of breaking their
limbs, if not losing TER lives.
NO SCHOOL BUILDINGS HAVE THEM.
"None of the school houses are provided
with fire escapes, not oven Chatham
Academy and the new Henry Street
school, where there are several hundred
children in each building. What a chance
for fearful holocaust, should a fire get
under good Roadway on the lower floors
before being discovered.
There are number of business build
ings," said the chief, which are in need
of fire escapes. Adler's big history build
ing at Bull and Broughton streets and
the building occupied by Theus
Bros. and Schwarz on the OPP
posite corner have not sufficient means of
egress from the top floors in case of fire
A number Of girls are employed on the
third and fourth floor of the Adler build
ing, and mattress packing is carried on on
the top floor Of the building opposite. The
Guckenheimer building has no fire es-
capes. 1t is strange they were not pro-
vided when the new building was erected.
''The large buildings on the north side of
Bay street would not require fire escapes,
as they are only two stories above Bay
street, though several stories above River
street, but there are numbers of large
buildings, three and four stories high, in
the business section which have only one
stairway leading up through the interior
In case of a fire cutting Off the stairway
what chance would the men on the top
floor have but to jump for their iives2
Iron fire escapes could be placed in the
rear of these buildings on the lane side at
comparatively small cost.
ANY NUMBER OF PLANS.
''The best fire escape 1 have ever seen"
continued Chief Puder, twas one / saw
in Louisville, KY, recently attached to a
public school. 1t was an enclosed circular
chute with entrances from each story. An
exhibition was given for the benefit of
the visiting fremen. The children shot
out of tho chute faster than we could
count without injury to themselves. They
seemed to enjoy it. The whole building
was emptied in few minutes