Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-06-15
FOOD FOR THE ANGRY FLAMES
st. Vincent Sanitarium Reduced to
Shapeless Ruins Last Even
ing by Fire.
AN INSTITUTION OF NATIONAL FAME
Detailed Account of the Destructive
Conhagration-Two Deaths May
Result from the Disaster
Loss and Insurance.

About $50 o'clock last evening fire was
discovered in the south end of the man.
sard-roof of st. Vincent sanitarium. An
alarm was soon after sounded by the
cathedral bells and the bell in the tower
at Firemen's hall and in very few min
utes the local fire company and hundreds
of people were on the ground, nearly all
of whom were evidently much excited by
the peril of the beautiful saniterium, but
all were eager to render any assistance in
their power to save the property. Mean
while Archbishop Chapelle, number of
the Sisters, and several citizens hurried
to the chapel and other rooms in the
roof and express the opinion that they
could then have quickly extinguished
the fire If a strong stream of water had
been at their command. There was then
no fire in the chapel, the flames being at
work in the space between the ceiling of
that room and the roof.
EVIDENT THE BUILDING WAS DoonED.
But, owing to lack of organization, de-
ficient fire equipment and lack of water
pressure at the critical moment, the fire
soon spread through the upper rooms,
burst through the slate-roof and seized
possession of the cupola. Then it be-
came evident that the building was
doomed and every effort was directed to
saving its valuable contents and the ad-
joining brick hospital and other annexes.
np1 Tor
and the hospital annex was Quilted. Much
of the furniture in the sanitarium, includ-
ing the magnificent $1,000 piano, was
taken out, but it was all badly damaged.
The furniture and fixtures Of the hospital
were also seriously injured in the excite
ment incident to hasty removal. The
total loss on buildings and furniture is
estimated at from $4,000 to $4,000 with
no insurance except $1,000 ON the sani-
tarium building. The insurance on the
hospital and contents expired few days
ago and had not been renewed.
THE HEAT WAS INTENSE.
After the flames had spread through the
upper rooms of the sanitarium and burst
through the roof, they burned with great
energy and soon the roof fell crashing
through to the lower floors, instantly
transforming the whole interior of the
building into veritable furnace. The
intense heat ignited the one-story kitchen
Intervening between the sanitarium and
the hospital. The roof and cornice of the
latter structure caught fire in several
places and the former Breeden residence,
on the opposite side of the street to the
northeast, came near being fred by Gin
ders. Fortunately the wind was not high
and was blowing toward the evacantground
to the north. Otherwise the hospital, Or
phanage, adobe annex to the sanitarium,
the cathedral the court house and much
other property would almost inevitably
have shared the fate of the sanitarium.
great deal of confusion and misman-
agement attended the evidently we'll in
tended efforts of the volunteer fire depart.
ment and it's appliances were manifestly
defective and inefficient. There was
NO ORGANIZATION,
no head, no authority that commanded
obedience. These remarks apply to many
citizens, who faithfully endeavored (some
at the peril of their llves) to save prop
erty, as we'll as to the firemen. Much
furniture was ruined in the excitement
that might have been saved without in
jury. For instance, the piano could have
been moved to place of safety in per-
feet condition by ten cool men, instead
of having its legs broken off and being |
tumbled out of the burning building like
a saw-log.
Much severe criticism of the water
company has been INDUCED in and it GER
tainly did appear to the spectators that
the water pressure was deficient. But the
agents of the water company furnish
proof this forenoon that at the time the
fire broke out there was an actual pres
sure of over 80 pounds and that before
the fire had been long in progress this
pressure was ran up to about 14O pounds.
The water company agents further ex-
plain that only four-inch main runs by
the sanitarium,
THE TwELvE-INCH MAIN
being turned off from Palace avenue
about block above; that this four-inch
main would have afforded ample pressure
for one hose from one hydrant, hut that
the mistake was made of attempting to
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