The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-04-15
HBNLIVES LOST IN A FIRE
A Four-Story Tenement in Brooklyn
Proves a Death Trap.
THE WORK OF AN INCENDlARY,


Story, but No Sound is Heard From Any
of the Other Ten Italians Who Slept in
That and the Third story---Thrilling
Recital of Survivor.
BRooKLYN, April 2.-Fire broke out short
ly before daylight yesterday morning in the
.four-story tenement at No. Sc Union street,
IN the heart Of the South Brooklyn Italian
colony, and before it was extinguished ten
persons were burned to death. The flames
did their work swiftly and surely. Only
seven people out OF seventeen escaped them,
and all their effects were destroyed. The
building itself was completely gutted, even
the panels of the doors being burned
through.
Following are the Victims Nicolo Tralia,
aged thirty years; Dominick Tralia. aged
;twenty-four years; Lucia Tralia, aged twen-
lty-four years; Tralias baby, aged eight days;
August Buono. aged forty years; Maria
Buono. aged thirty-fve years; Fannie Buono,
aged Ave years; Johanna Buono, aged eight
cen months; Lucia Ca!abria, aged eighteen
years; Camelo Maratto, aged twenty-five
years.
1t seemed strange that so manv should
have perished in so small fire. The build.
ing was not large one and the damage tot
will be covered by O few thousand dollars.
IA fire escape in the rear Of the building Of
ifered a way out to the inmates, and the ftre'
men were on the scene promptly with
dozen engines. But before their eyes, and
II the statements OF several Of them are tc
be credited, almost without their knowledge,
holocaust was going on while they were
han "a On c01plv
the flames. Ore OF them said it was fully an
hour after they arrived before they knew
. that a scene of death was being enacted
within the walls OF the smoking brick tene-
ment.
There were no screams OF distress, no out
cries Of any kind. The inmates simply smoth-
cred and were burned to death like rats in
tran. The position of their bodies when
they were found showed that death had
not come By the painless. merciful
processes of suffocation. They had been
awakened to the realization OF their predica-
ment and had sought in vain to avoid 1t. The
bodies were piled in heaps by the rear
windows, as if the panic smitten people had
sought escape there and had been stricken
down. One or two were in an attitude OF
prayer. The impress OF agony was shown on
the limbs of all, and the devouring fire had
burned every vestige of clothing from them.
d
when the firemen reached tbs upper stories,
and the bodies were scared almost beyond
recognition.
There were two incidents CT escape. John
Calabria, who lived with his wife, Lucia
Calabria, and his parents-in-law, the Buonos,
on thetop floor, broke through the smoke
and flame to the fire escape, and instead OF
going down it, clambered up to the top and
swung himself by the gutter OF the
adjoining house to safety. He was unable
to rescue his wife. and he said that she had
died in his arms, while he was half carrying
her to the window. He left behind him to
their fate his father-in-law and mother-in-
law and their two children. Calabria Is of
q small, nervous build, and could
scarcely have sustained the weight
of anyone on the narrow, perpendicular iron
ladder which did duty as FIRE escape. He
said the rounds were heated red hot when he
seized them, and this may explain the failure
of the others to follow his example.
Meanwhile another perilous scene was be-
ing enacted two flights below. where Joseph
Esposito lived with his wife Maria, and four
children, over the grocery and fruit store
conducted by him on the street floor. Carl
IEsposito, a bright lad Of thirteen, told how
bis family escaped.
"My mother does not sleep we'll at night"
he said, land early in the morning, while
all Ol US WeGe dUou, SQe was awakened Dy u
cracking sound like fire makes. She start
. ed up and then she saw the flame through the
Adoor outside and the smoke coming under
the cracks. My father was going to open
the door to lead US down the stairway. but
she said We could not get out that way. By
this time we were all awake Then my
father opened the front window and we crept
along tho cornice over his grocery front to
the butcher shop at No. 40 Union street,
which my uncle, Antonio Esposito, keeps.
There we were let in at his window. We
were all in our night Clothes"
The origin of the fire is not known. What
Is known is that it broke out in the hall on
the first floor and swept up through the
stairways. cutting off at once all avenues OF
escape. 1t is a curious fact that there had
been another fire OF the same kind half 4
block down on the other side Of the street,
and that the engines had only left the scene
half an hour before they we're recalledto III?
second fire.