The record-union., 1896-05-22
Four Known to Have Been Killed and
Many Injured.
Eight WOrkmen EntOmbed in a
Michigan Mine-An Explosion of
Natural Gas at Coffeyville, Kansas,
Wrecks Two Buildings--One Man
Crushed to Death and a Number of
People Seriously Injured.

BUFFALO On. ", May PA Sec
tion of the Seneca-Street front of the
Brown building collapsed at 800 o'clock
this morning, burying a score of people
IN the ruins. George Metz, barber,
Jenie Griffith, cashier in the barber
shop, and a laborer named Deigler are
dead; William P. Straub, a contractor,
is known to be in the ruins, and a dozen
others are more or less injured, one of
whom will probably die.
Those at the hospitals are: Jacob
Langdon, barber, scalp torn and badly
confused; William Alexander, steam fit
ter, scalp wounds and body bruised; |;
Jacob Richman, barber, bruised about
the body and head; S. j. Hawke car
penter, skull fractured, may die; James
Adams, mason, scalp wounds and in
Jured hip; Michael O'Brien, carpenter,
wrenched back and scalp wounds; Jos.
Bullard plasterer, injured internally;
Edward Murphy, plasterer. injured in
ternally, right arm injured; Fritz For
NAL, German labOrer, body bruised.
The Brown building stood on the cor
ner Of Main and Seneca streets, and for
years the Western Union Telegraph
Company had occupied the ground floor
floor as an operating room. The build
ing was filled with offices, many of
which We're occupied, and on the ground
floor on both Main and Seneca streets
were stores occupied by merchants.
The Western Union left the building a
few weeks ago, and the owners of the
block began the work of remodellng
and strengthening it, On the Seneca
street side workmen were engaged in
putting in place new columns and beams
and new foundations for them.
Numbers and 10 Seneca street were
unoccupied, the principal alterations
being made at that point. No. y was
occupied as a barber shop by George
Sienert and No. IA by James Clegg,s
jewelry store and Thomas Jones' news
stand. The offices on the floors above
We're nearly all tenanted, and alto
gether there were probably fifty people
in the colla1sed sesetion
The walls fell with a crash. taking
down roof and ceiling with them. Iron
columns were twisted as though thew
had been soft wires. Heavy wooden
beams were torn to pieces like paper.
Pillars of brick crumbled to pieces. NOT
strong enough to resist the strain of
the weight that had fallen upon them
Here and there could be seen Deople
who had not been caught in the falling
debris rushing to a place of safety. The
outer wall fell into the street burving
those who had not had time to escape
a cloud of dust arose from the debris.
hiding the ruins from sight and cover
ing the people on the streets
Ine fre department was called, and
with the police and workmen who
came rushing to the fallen building the
work of rescue was begun. Some of the
people who had been in the building
were saved almost miraculously. hav-
ing been penned in by the falling tim
bers and walls. They were taken out
as speedily as possible and given sur
gica1 attention
In Seibert's barber shop were nine
BARRIERS, the girl cashier and several
customers. When the crash came all
made a rush for the front door, but
the falling bricks drove them to the
rear, where an alley leads to Wash
lngton street. Those in front rushed
into the alley, only to be met by the
falling rear walls, under which Metz
was buried and killed. The others
crouched in a corner of the shop until
the avalanche ceased, when they made
their way out. The cashier had her
desk in .he front of the shop behind
wire cage. She was unable to get
out of it in time to join the others and
perished beneath the falling walls.
The experience of the occupants of
No. IA was somewhat similar to those
in the barber shop, but all escaped
without injury.
In Nos. s and 10 were probably twen-
ty working men, including steam fit
ters, iron workers, carpenters and plas-
terers. and it was here that the crash
was the greatest. Nearly all of the men
were caught in the falling walls and
floors and buried in the ruins. The ten
ants on the upper floors had many mar
row escapes, but so far as known all
Of them succeeded in making their es-
cape.
A search for the missing began, and
the ruins were worked over in the hope
of finding the bodies OF Contractor
Straub and Jennie Griffith, which were
known to be somewhere in the mass of
wreckage. Shortly before o'clock the
body of Miss Griffif1ith was found and
removed to the morgue. Str BIS body
has not yet been found.
The Commissioners of Public Works
will make a thorough investigation of
the accident.
MINERS ENTOMBED.