The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-11-29
FELL WITH A CRASH
An Old Man Buried Beneath
a Falling Chimney in
Hoboken.
CONTRACTOR FARRELL TO BLAME
Warned of the Danger, he Per-
sisted in Having His Men Dig
Beneath the Foundation.

An excavation under the walls of u
store adjoining the Germania Theatre.
Hudson street, HoboKen. caused a chim-
ney to fall in this morning, nearly kill
ing a man. The store Is occupied by
Hugo Neil, an old. man, seS %snty-three
years of age. Neil was at the time COOK
ing his breakfast. He runs the store as a
variety shop. selling canned goods and all
descriptions of fabric and notions.
He has a stove back OF
a high counter. and sleeps back of the
stove at night. He performs all of his
cooking on the stove. This morning
Neil awoke later than usual aad i5 was
eleven o'clock before he had bsgun Try
ing the breakfast. He was bending over
the stove at the time Of the cave in. Un-
derneath the chunk of the pick and scrap
ing OF the shovel could be heard.
The workmen who are digging q foun-
dation for the new fire house there mad
begun to chop at the bricks supporting
the columns Of the frame quilting in
Theatre contiguous to the store is re-
painted by u plaster partition.
BURIED UNDERNEATH BRICKS.
AS Neil bent over the stove he felt a
slight jar, and heard q swapping noise.
He Strengthened up, startled. AS he did
so a shower of bricks from the
chimney above came rafting dowu
and Neil was forced TO the floor. The
supporting bricks under the stove had
fallen away. The stove was Knocked
over and live Goals were scattered over,
the floor. Neil was buried under til .
debris. Nearly all the bricks from th g
chimney overhead came down, leaving
only a small part protrudinR through the
roof as a smoke stack, The workmen
outside heard Jhe rattle aud clash aud
they jumped aside III time to escape
being struck by the bricks which came
through a hole in the floor. They did
not think of Neil inside. He had been
completely buriel under sths bricks and
mortar, together With huge chunks Of
plastering.
NEIL RESCUED.
One of the attaches of the Germania
Theatre heard the crash and he ran 10 the
place thinking that perhaps Neil had
knocked the stove over. Not fudinL
Neil and guessing the mans predlca-
ment ne shouted tor assistance, and,
with another man, dug Neil out. The
man was thought to be dead. HIS head
was bleeding profusely and his body was
limp. Officer Kenny summoned an am
bulance. The man was conveyed to the
hospital, whore IL was ascertained that
his leg was broken and he was horribly
bruised about the body. One of his eyes
was pnt out by the dirt. Officer Breen
had ran TO the place, ana. seeing smoke
inside, thought the place >at1re. He ex-
tingnlshed a slight blaze.
1t is thought that Neil will cover ais
though his Injuries are very serious, and
the leg is badly broken and mashed.
CONTRACTOR To BLAME.
Contractor harreil is conducting the
excavation on The building. He mas made
a practice OF digging even with the walls
of the building on u straight line down.
The managers of the theatre who have
charge of the building cautioned Farrell
against digging so close to the fonnoa-
tion, expressing fears that the building
would be damaged. Farrell paid no
attention.. and wnen he came to the
stables back OF the theatre. he ordered
the men to take out a portion of the
bricks supporting the taole SO that his
work could be expedited. The excava-
ton at that point is over twenty-five
feet deep. and should the stable give
way 1t would go dowa with a tremendous
crash. Farrel saw when the bricks we're
taken from uuder the stable that he had
made a mistake. aud he mad a single
plank propped against the wall. The
men who work In the stables are AFRAID
of its falling in.