The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-12-24
MANY PEOPLE WERE HURT.
That Many We're Not Killed Vas Al
most Miraculous.
AN EXPLOSION OF NATURAL GAS,
Wrecked the BuiIding and Caused
Most of tt" DnWuic--Gtu Bu~tness
hlurl, ui i.,riuud Uurntd.

Chicago, December 23.--Fire broke out
shortly after 4 o'clock this afternoon in
the basement Of the fiye-story building at
104 Madison street, the first floor and base
ment of which was occupied by the TOsetti
Restaurant company and the second roor
by the billiard parlors of Frank Murray
The blaze was insignificant at first and a
crowd of people gathered on the sidewalk
in front of the building to watch the work
of the firemeu. About dozen policemen
Were husly engaged in pushing back the
throng when an explosion of natural gas
took place. The building Was badly wreck
ed, and the windows, grating, sidewalk
! lights and manhole covers were hurled into
the air and fell among the crowd. Dozens
of people were thrown from their feet and
twenty three were more or less injured.
only one of them being seriously hurt.
The following is a list of those more or
less seriously injured:
Captain Thomas O'Connor. burned about
head, face and body; may die
James Jolly pipeman, burned about head.
James Murphy. plpeman, injured about
the head.
and heard
Policeman Thomas j. Fleming. burned
about head.
Policeman ]. j. Murphy. burned about
head
Il. Gerber, burned about head and face.
c. j. Brown, burned about face and head.
Katie Amburg, burned about head.
Bertha Johnson, burned about head
Joseph Tennyson, burned about face and
hands.
Policeman c. j. Bresnahon, face and
hands burned,
e. Summers, burned about the face and
hands.
II. e. Thomasson, stunned by force OF
explosion; taken home unconscious.
The explosion caused Wild panic in the
street. and in the excitement which fol.
lowed many people We're thrown down and
trampled upon. That many were aef killed
and many more injured was l>rtle short
of a miracle. Murrays billiard parlors
were hlled with men when TIE explosion
occurred, who paid no attention 10 the
hlaze in the basement until the windows
went sailing into the street and the plas-
ter began to come down upon their heads
The rush was great as the excited billiard
players plunged down the stairs for safety
and into the outer air, Many of them es-
capped by the stairway. some took the fire
escape and those who We're late or who
NEresS
were taken out by the tremen
The fire spread through ihe building With
great rapidity after the explosion. and
within ten minutes It was blazing fercelv
CAL after call for additional engines was
sent by Chief Sweenie but the fire cnnld
only be reached in front and rear and
was difflcult of access. The severe weather
caused much of the water TO freeze. and
within an hour the building resembled an
ICEBERG with furnace in it's Interior Tho
building was within fifty feet Of mo IN
tersection of Dearborn and Madison streets
where loops OF the West Side and North
Side cable lines interseet. and from Tho
time that the fire broke out until after mid
night traffic was enirlyaoln etaoinETAoI
night tafhc was entirely SUSPENDED on
both lines. va
Ihe loss is estimated at s125,O0o of
which $50 coo will fall on the Tosetti com.
pany $4,000 on Murray and $4,000 on
ing. As 'u'a