The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-05-21
BURIED UNDER RUINS
Buffalo Building Collapses
Carrying Down Twen-
ty Men.
PATCHING AN OLD RooKERY
Several Known to Be Dead; others
Hurt-some Marvellous
Escapes.
PATCHING AN OLD ROoKERY

81,
the corner Of Main and Seneca streets,
which was undergoing extensive altera-
tion and repair, collapsed with an awful
crash, burying a score of people in the
r'ilisas. At this writing one man is dead,
and II IS believed that several other dead
bodies are under the mass of debris.
The old building is one of the city's
land marks 1t stood on the corner Of
MAIN and Seneca streets, and for years
The Western Union Telegraph Company
had occupied the room on the corner as
business office and all of the third floor
as a operating room The building was
filed with offices, almost all of which
We're occupied, and on the ground floor
on both Main and Seneca streets were
stores occupied by merchants. The West
ern Union left the building a few weeks
ago and the owners of the block began
the work of remodelling and strengthen
ing 1t. On the Seneca street side work
men We're engaged in putting in place new
columns and beams and new foundations
for them
About half-past nine o'clock the walls
OF section of the building on Seneca
street collapsed. There was no warning
OF the falling plaster or creaking tim
eers. The walls fell with crash, tear
ing down roof and ceiling with them.
AT No. IL Seneca street was the barber
shop of George Seinert, employing half
a score~of men, one of whom is dead and
others severely injured. The girl cashier
IS somewhere in the ruins Seinert saws
ne f1rst heard a noise like the roll of
thunder, then the crash came. He and
his men made rush for the rear door
winch opens on an alley leading toward
washington street. Just as those in the
|4ead reached the alley the rear walls, fell.
puryifg them under mass of bricks and
tarnbers. George Metz, q years of age.
was taken out TERRIBLY crushed and died at
the hospital.
AT NO. ID was Clegg's jewelry store and
Jones news depot. There We're nearly A
dozen people in the place when the col
lapse occurred, but all succeeded in es-
Gaping through the alley in the rear With
out serious INJURY.
NOS. and 10 Seneca were unoccupied.
the fronts bein torn out in the process of
alteration. Here Enost of the workmen
We're employed, the steam fitting being
done BY j. r. Cassler, who had fully a
dozen men at work Nearly all were
caught in the collapse and some severely
injured. Cassler's brother, you1n OF
eighteen years., was buried under the
fallen timbers but escaped being crushed
and was taken out practically Ininjured.
At ten o'clock Mr. Cassler reported that
all of his men but two were accounted for.
There were also number of iron work.
ers at work. some of whom have not been
accounted FOR as yet.
The upper floors were occupied as of
fees and it is believed some of the occu-
pants must have gone down with the
building. j. c. Thorner, of room No. 10,
had marrow escape. He says
The first I heard was a low rumble
and then a crash in the alley back Of
my Office. Then Immediately following
another crash came and blocked our way
out. There were three others in the office
besides myself. After the second crash
the men tried to get out. held them
back in the corner where 1 was. tie
strongest part of the wall. The wall fell
all around us with a tremendous crash,
but it did not touch any of us. Then
we got out through the door leading to
the shoe shop and went down the stairs,
climbing over the banfsters.
At 1890 o'clock the wreckers at work
on the debris uncovered the foot of one
man and then the arm of another The
faces of both were completely hidden in
the great piles of brick, mortar and tim
ber that lay heaped upon them. Some of
this was removed and one of the inn
prisoned men cried:-'F'pr Gods sake,
men, take this terrible weight off me''
A few moments later the other man
was brought to view and found to be still
alive. Both are seriously injured. Their
names are Ed Murphy and William
Schund.
At eleven o'clock other men could be
heard groaning in the ruins, and the
rescuers were urged to increased efforts
to do their best. They responded with
will and debris flew thick and fast. AT
the same time a fireman who had entered
the second story of the building discov-
cred the presence of three men 6n what
remains of the third floor Of the section
that fell. The fremen called to them
and one of them answered saying he was
pfnioned under heavy timbers, but was
not badly hurt. His name he said was
Joseph Seller. He was unable to tell
who the other two men under the heavy
tirnbers are, but said he could hear them
groaning. One of them was praying, ne
said. Efforts are now being made 10
reach these men.
Up to noon nothing had been seen of
Jennie Gribman, the girl cashier inEbin-
ert's baker shop, andthere is little doubt
that she is dead in the ruins.
Three Poles who were working for the
iron work contractor are missing; thought
to be in the ruins. Thus far Metz, Crib
ben and an unknown man are found to
be dead. The injured will be about a dozen