Morning journal and courier., 1893-10-28
FIERCE WORK OF FLAMES.

| The Entire Fire Department of Pitts
| burg at work-An Immense BniId
| ing Destroyed-One of the WorkmeI
who Discovered the Fire Was Liter
| ally Roasted About the Face, Hand
and Arms when Rescued by tn,
Firemen-A Long Row ofTenement,
Buried Under Failing Walls-Ont
Man Fatally Injured-The Loss VIII
be Nearly Million Dollars.
PIrTsBURa, Pa OCT. 27.-Shortly after
o'clock this afternoon the entire fire de
partmsnt was summoned to Eleventh and
Pike streets. By the time the first engines
on the scene were in service flames were
bursting from nearly every window and
door of the immense building owned and
occupied by the Chautauqua Lake Ice com
pany and the Pittsburg Storage company.
The building was 300 feet long by 100 feet
wide, was made of brick and stone and was
seven stories, or 90 feet, in height.
Edward Spies, an employe, discovered the
fire and gave the alarm. he was working
on the fourth floor. Almost instantly he
was enveloped in the flames. Although he
attempted to 6ght the fire he was driven
back to a window fifty feet from the
ground. he crept out upon the narrow
window sill and dropping down hung by
his hands until reached by the lsddermsn
of Truck A. His hands, arms and face
were literally roasted.
In five minutes after the discovery of the
fire the great structure was ablszs on every
floor. A soaking rain aided greatly in
preventing the spread of the FIRE, which st
ii 4 49, a. 1.
many valuable properties in the vicinity.
At 2 O'Clock the occupants In the surround
ing blocks were notified to move out. Be-
tween Mulberry alley and Pennsylvania
avenue, on the southeast side of the burn
ing building, were some cheap tenements
crowded with Polish Jews and Slave, who
were thrown into panic. Fifteen minutes
later the side of the big building fell with
a terrible crash, burying a long row of the
tenements just vacated.
Flames burst from the buried buildings
adding danger TO the surrounding proper
ty. At $50 o'clock the four upper stories
of the Thirteenth street wall fell outward,
burying the street to the depth of ten feet
and crushing the house of John Glenn, on
the opposite side of the street. On the
ground floor of the warehouse were FIVE
loaded freight cars. Just before the crash
they were drawn, all burning, to place
of safety. OF sll the hundreds of thous-
ands of dollars worth of property stored in
the building these five cars were all that
were saved.
The large warehouse of the Hsveler
Storage company, on the opposite side of
Pike street, caught FIRE several times, but
was not seriously damaged. The rears of
a number of Pennsylvania avenue build
ings were severely scorched. The most
serious damage here was to the Hiber drug
store, which was almost destroyed.
number of narrow escapes were made by
in the storage building.
]. Heilmsn dropped from a third floor
window to the alley. His injuries are ia
tai Martin Griffith, who was badly burned,
hung from window until rescued by the
iremen. Edward Spies, who was burned
about the head, may not recover. William
Cox, who was rescued from the third floor
by firemen, was badly burned. William
Smith was burned about the face and body
Frank McCann of. Engine company No.
was struck by falling walls and had his
legs fractured. A number of people were
knocked down and trsmpled upon when
the crowd of spectators surged back at the
time the walls fell.
President Scott stated to night that the
Ioss to the Chsutauqua Lake Ice company
and the Pittsburg Storage company will be
nearly million. He could give no esti-
mate of the amount of insurance. The
storage apartments, he stated, we're filed
with oil kinds of goods, some of which
we're very valuable. These goods were
owned by probably several hundred differ
ent people and were mostly insured by the
owners as well as by the storage company.
At 10 o'clock to- night the fire is still
burning furiously, but is confined within
the lettering walls.