St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-11-23
ONE TAKES A FATAL LEAF
THRILLING RESCUE OF A FALL
ING GIRL BY A BRAVE FIRE
CAPTAIN.
BURNING FLOORS COLLAPSE.
But One of Five Men Buried in
the Debris Is Taken Out
Alive.

story structure at the corner OIL Van
Buren and Franklin streets, was de-
stroyed by fire today, entailing a
loss of $375,000 on the owners and
tenants and causing the loss Of five
lives, the fatal injury of two other
persons and the injury of six others.
The dead are:
PATRICK J. O'DONNELL, lieuten-
ant of Engine Company No. 2.
MARTIN SHERRICK, pipeman. I.
JOHN DOVE, pipeman.
JOHN PRENDERGAST, pipeman.
E. LANDGRAF, who jumped from
fourth-story window, was injured in
ternally and died at the county hospi-
tai.
The injured are: Harry Neil, jumped
from a fourth-story window, internally
injured and left arm broken; will die;
Nellie Turner, jumped from third,
die; Aggie McLain, Hattie Brennan,
Edna Rittert, Mary Pink, all overcome
by smoke and will recover; Daniel Nc
Nally, driver for engine company, bur
led beneath the debris, will recover.
1t was few minutes before a.
m. when Rose B. Race, employed by
Stein & Biers, noticed an odor of
smoke. She was working near a
door, and, stepping out into a hall
way, her suspicious were confirmed.
The corridors were rapidly filling
with smoke. She ran back into the
work room. Thirty girls were there.
Fire! Fire! The building is on
fire. the frightened girl cried as she
dashed past her companions.
Instantly there was confusion.
Following the example of the girl
Who had given the alarm, score or
more employees ran here and there,
not knowing what to do or where
to go.
A TERRIBLE FALL.
Although every effort was made
to control the frightened girls, sew
eral opened the windows and climbed
upon the lodges. One of the first to
do this was Nellie Turner. She
screamed for help, and some one on
the ground shouted to her to jump.
She, however, went to another win
dow near a fire escape and climbed
out. Those on the street watched
her movements with great anxiety.
When she grasped the escape and
swung herself off from the stone
ledge on which she had stood hum
dreds cheered. She commenced to
on the fire escape, between the first
and second story, and when he saw
the girl above him he started up to
aid her. He was too late. She sud-
denly lost her balance and fell. Of
ficer Flaherty tried to catch her, but
could not reach her. She was picked
up almost unconscious.
The escape of Olga Kellar, of SIS
Waubansia avenue, is regarded as
Marvellous by those who saw her
when she appeared at a fourth
story window. She was also en-
ployed by Stein & Biers. She threw
up a window and climbed out on
to the narrow strip Of wood on the
outside of the sash. She saw a few
feet below her a ladder, on which
two firemen stood, and she prepared
to jump.
"Wait; don't jump" shouted Capt.
Hermanson from the ladder.
Great volumes of smoke poured
out of the window where the girl
stood. To the hundreds of persons
who were watching her from the
street the seconds seemed like hours.
Cheer after cheer went up for Capt.
Hermanson. He had almost reached
the window, when he suddenly
cfo ctr .ly,n
the cause. He had heard the girl
scream, and as he looked up he saw
her reel and lose her hold on the
window. She had been overcome by
smoke and was falling. Capt. Her.
manson braced himself, and as the
senseless form of the girl dropped
he seized it with his right arm. The
effort nearly cost him his own life,
for he narrowly escaped falling.
From hundreds of throats cheers
were heard as the brave captain de-.
scended the ladder with his human
burden and carried her across the
street to a drug store. A physician
said she would recover.
BURIED UNDER DEBRIS.
By noon the firemen thought the
worst of the days battle was past
They were mistaken Shortly before
1 O'Clock a large safe on the fifth
floor fell to the fourth, carrying it
and the first, second and third floors
with it. Five members of Engine
Company No. were working on the
cnnnn6 Hnn,. nd oil I
meath the mass of brick, stone and
timber. All were killed but Daniel
McNally. After nearly an hours
work the rescuers had opened a pas
sageway through the pile of debris
and succeeded in getting close enough
to where the firemen were buried to
assure themselves that Lieut.. O'Don-
nell was alive. He was just able
to talk and it was with great diff
Guilty that his words could be heard.
Men who knew him well recognized
his voice.
'Is anybody near your" one of the
rescuers shouted.
"Yes," came back the answer faint
ly from O'Donnell.
"How many?"
"Two."
"Alive or dead?"
Dead, think"
Gradually the lieutenant's voice
became weaker, and his reply to the
last question was scarcely audible.
The rescuers called to him and asked
hin, how SeriOlSlv he was injured
He could not make reply. The fire