The Portland daily press., 1895-07-16
SET RIVER AFIRE.
Dangerous Combination Of Boys,
Naphtha and Matches.
UNUSUAL SCENE WITNESSED BY
NEW YORK CROWD.
Fire Department Called Out to Put Out
Fire ON the River-Flames Finally Sub
dued After a Struggle.

Fire Department Called Out to Put Out a
Fire on the River-Flames Finally Sub
dued After Struggle.
New York, July 1.-Two little ragged
and bobtail boys set the East River on
fire yesterday, just about sundown, and
it took a battalion of fremen and the
f1reboat Hayemeyer about six hours to
put out the flames A crowd of thirty
thousand persons, seeing great screen
of smoke in the east, walked to First
| avenue and Fortieth street, 10 see the
| blaze. They found the blaze and Gordon
Of police there. They stayed for two hours
watching the East River and the bulk
head, from Fortieth.. to Forty first street,
burn, and then went home, congratula-
ting themselves on having witnessed
wonderful thing. 3e,s..5
There is big city dump for refuse at
the foot of East Fortieth street. At
about six O'Clock last evening two boys
from the First avenue tenements were
playing on the dumping board. They
had box of matches and thought it
would be great fun to light them, drop
them into the water and hear them siss as
they went out.
The Equitable Gas Company has works
extending from Thirty ninth street to
Forty second street, along the river front.
Beneath each pier and back Of the bulk
heads they have immense rstorts for the
storage of naphtha, with . system Of pipe
coils, extending very near tho bulkhead,
SO that the storage retoYts may be replen-
ished from boats, which are rnoored
against the pier. Everythirg il done to
prevent the great mass ;of the explosive
from coming insdirect contact with the
air. But sometimes leaks occur. One
did yesterday.
THOUSANDS oF GALLONS OF
NAPHTHA.
Beneath the surface Of the pier, between
Fortieth and Forty-hrst streets, were
stored about 80, 600 gallons Of naphtha,
used In making gas. One Of the retors
pipes sprang aleak some time during the
day, and by the time the little boys
thought they would like to hear match
siss the naphtha covered The surface of
the river from Fortieth TO Forty first
street and for 100 yards toward the Long
Island shore The first match thrown
by the boys didp't make 'any noise, but
it lighted this sheet Of explosive, and in
an instant great. wave of fame arose,
and the boys and the Italians were run
ming for their lives toward First avenue
The watchman for tho gas company
saw the fire, guessed what hAd caused 1t,
and, appreciating the danger, sent an
eral fire companies, but the fire was be-
yond any land forces. The pilot Of the
New Haven Railway towing boat Nary
| land, happening to pass, saw the blaze,
| and, putting in to shore, pulled out two
of the big city garbage scows and carried
| them away to place of safety.
| Meanwhile the flames were burning the
dump and making inroads upon the bulk
heads along the river front. Chief Walsh
summoned the flreboat Havemeyer, and
then when it got to- work the heavy
streams of water began to have some
effect on the flames.
DREADED AN EXPLOSION.
The chief Changer lay in the communi-
cation of the flames with the naphtha
retorts. If an explosion of that sort had
taken place the First avenue tenement
houses would have been In all probability
completely wrecked But the efforts of
the flremen were directed toward keeping
the bulkhead cool and in this they sue
ceeded, for by nine o'clock there was
nothing left save rim OF lame which
played and leaped about the base Of the
bulkhead, giving an effect which was
exceedingly beautiful but immensely
dangerous.
The leak could not be found, and the
only thing the fireboat could do was to
remain at its post until all the naphtha
| in the big retort that WAS capable OF get
ting intosthe river..should escape:
It will..require 81, 500 to.repair the dump.
The damage to the bu1khead will be
hard to estimate, for the pilinngs may
require an entirely new face. The loss
of the naphtha Is not very important
50, 600 will probably cover all the loss to
the gas company. including the injury
| to the retort.
The boys who set the East River afrs
prefer to remain incognito.