Morning journal and courier., 1893-07-10
ADIsAsTROUS FIRE.

OH AOng "nAT1 SASu1u"
 Vigorous Work Yesterday-A DIE
 Force of Men Clear Away the DeDi
 One Hundred Feet of Platform n".i'
 Yesterday - No InterruPtAon
 Handling FreIght-The Loss bout
 s7O. Caused by Flash Of
 Lightning-Lively Work by the ETC
 Department.
 A fine and awe inspiring picture, 1T serious confagration can be deemed such, was witnessed by thousands of people on Saturday night. It was shortly after o'clock when a vivid bolt of lightning descended from the skies. A freight car loaded with barrels of kerosene oil stood directly in it's path. The car did not move to one side because it could not, neither did the lightning divert one ioata from its path. It struck the car, and strange 10 relate no report of thunder followed, but something far more serious did. A mighty burst of flame and smoke rose high in the air from the oil laden ear. la less time than it takes to tell 1t several other freight laden cars were in flames, and SO also was the transfer freight shed alongside where they were standing. An alarm of fire was at once sent In from box 321, and when the fire depart ment reached tine scene the flames had spread with frightful rspidity. A second alarm was sent in and In 8 short time streams of water from five engines were poured on the flames. They did not seem to have the slightest effect in eubdu- ing the flames. A stiff breeze blew from the northeast, blowing the flames directly to long strings of loaded cars on three tracks between thoee and the transfer shed that were ablaze and to the freight house. The fremeA directed all their en- ergies toward saving the freight house that was full of merchandise.
 In the meantime car after car took fire. There were ninety of them on the five tracks, eighteen on an average on each track. The fire had full sway. Immense columns of black smoke rolled heavenwsrd. The heat was intense, and 1t was unbear- able 100 feet distant from the burning cars and shed. Thousands of people-men, women and children-esred not for the rain that was pouring in torrents, nor the vivid flashes of lightning that, swept through the sky. They were spell bound at the magnificent spectacle that was pre- sented to their eyes.
 It WAS an extremely dangerous position in which hundreds of spectators were placed. Near the ceater of the fire that reached for several hundred feet, the entire length of the trains being afre, was a car loaded with cartridges of all calibres, con- signed to several firms by the Winchester Repeating Arms company. Not far from that car was another loaded with barrels of naphtha. Soon the cartridges com menced to explode. The popping resembled | fire 1o1a of xuith of Gatling guns thrown in as side issue, and for fully an hour the reports continued and until the last cartridge had exploded. Now and then naphtha barrel added to din. There would be deep boom like that made by mortar. A huge column of smoke and flame would shoot high into the air, and far above 1t, aud for full ly quarter of a mile into space parts of the barrels sailed through the air, just as bomb does when 1t des cribes it's flight. Fortunately for the fire men who were working as close 10 the 6rs as the intense heat would permit, the nap tha did not fly about but was confined te the car in which the explosion took place Neither, as far as could be learned, wal | any one injured by the exploding car ! triages, of which there were fifteen tons | all of which were consigned to John P l Lowell of Boston.
 | The fremen and the policemen worked like beavers to save the cars and their con
 tents, but in vain. Only one train, t, which locomotive was attached, wa
 saved. All the others were totally de ! stroyed, and so were twenty four empt, cars that were on the track east of tn, l transfer shed.
 l Several trscks' length from the transfer | shed was long line of cars. Soon they began to smoke. An engine hooked on tt them. A brakeman named Hogan in at tempting to climb on the top of one of tn, l cars placed his hand on the iron guard. I was almost red hot, and when he drew hi
 haRd away he left the skin sticking to thu
 iron.
 The amount of damage done by the fir
 was at first estimated at between $100, ,O0'
 and $200, ,O00. Sixtyfour heavily-losd
 freight cars were burned, the contents o I some of them being valuable.
 Vice President Futile last evening sai,
 that he did not think the total amour
 would foot up more than $6O, 900 or $7O, 000 The contents of the CATS is almos impossible to be ascsr tsined until the way
 bills are checked and ownership established as is customary. A good deel of th
 freight was in transfer not originating fl this city.
 ! As VIII Uo 6ocu Uy IcloIcECS to all auSoI tisement in another part of this paper, tn,
 railroad will continue handling freigh 1 without interruption, notwithstanding the fire. All incoming freight will bs handled 1 at the Derby depot and all outgoing at tht
 Long wharf freight house
 A small army of men were at work al 1 day yesterday removing the debris anc | ruins, and by night things were pretty | thoroughly cleared away, one hundred | feet of platform was also built. Tn, | foundations for new freight house were also laid. 1t cannot be accurately asoer tained until this morning how much of tn, loss was covered by insurance, as tn, policies are locked up. It is considerei l doubtful that there is any large amount o1 ! insurance on the goods in transit, but i ] may be possible that some of 1t is insure6 | by the senders. Where there has beer ! actual loss which has not been covered by in company will treat the cases in accordance with liberal policy.
 It was bona fde fire with no suspicion of incendiarism, the fire having originated from stroke of lightning.
 terdsy morning. Bremen from engine 1 and 2's trucks staid until 6:3O o'clock yesterday morning, when they were re- lieved by two fremen each from steamers No. 5 and 3, who kept using extinguishers Thousands of people went to the scene of tine fire yesterday.
 The Pequots.
 The members of the Pequot club had a uarv oniovoh1, dipnor at tho olob hoz.,