New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-09-11

~ ,,uUIinr - talk Like the falling OF many
tors ~ iron from terrible height, the elevator
crashed f. the basement. 1t carried It's human
freight down down TO certain death with roar
that was deafening and quiver that shook the
tall office building that many persons IN II
thought the earth had quaked. The crash made
tv the car striking the basement floor not only
startled but terrified many persons in the street
and nearby buildings. a moment after the
accident persons were running in all directions
70 the building. which in little while was al
mos, surrounded by mass Of excited yelling
and surginS people.
THE DEAO.
The dead are:
BAcHRAcH sqae elevator Foe1 nineteen years DID, 0
NELSON Nick chef engineer of the building twenty
seven years Old. living IN North Ienth-s'' brooNN"
The accident happened about $50 o'clock
Some time before this somebody hao pulled the
safety rope that controls the pawls when arrest
the motion of the car, and the car. Whlch was
known as No G. got wedged in the shaft about
twelve feet from the ground floor strenuous
efforts were made by Bachrach TO release the
elevator, but as he was unable to do so he sem
for the chief engineer. Nelson. Although Nell
son is a comparatively young man 1or MS "oiN
bo was bright had had much experience. and
Il
competent man. He and Henry Landau the
sunerintendent of the building. responded to the
message from the elevator man asking for as
sistance At a glance they saw what was the
trouble ard in a short while Nelson had re-
Leased the pawls and the car was lowered 70
the ground floor.
FROM THE NINETEENTH FLOOR.
rhan he ordered the elevator man 70 take
Z is mot
.,ve,v II the two were carried to the top story
~, tho car. It is believed that they got to the
,,npermost floor and that they had started
49,, o,ain when the elevator fell There Is
,,,,,. aount however to the exact place
,o,, which the car began its awful plunge. On
each floor there is an indicator bulb to tell just
where the elevators are The bulb 1or car NO
registered the nineteenth floor moment a''er
the accident From that floor the men were
eure,v hurled 70 instant death. THESE lacts aIe
also horne out by the testimony ot seNeraI per
sons in the building. a woman scrubhins 'he
,ou :, the seventeenth floor saw the car shoot
downward She was standing near the door 10
tho shaft as the elevator WhZZled by her' 30
Great was the speed Of the elevator at 'ha'
time that she was unable 10 see VINO was IN IL
In describing the descent she SAID that 'he car
ea,, downward At such a great rate that 1t
did not think it was the elevator falling until
she heard the piercing screams uttered py the
men in ii and the cannon-like report that Io'-
lowed as II struck the basement floor
man on the tenth floor also sa" the car
eboot nv ana stn a third person, a little boy on
,bo ninth floor witnessed the descent of the car
i was an exceedingly fortunate thing that the
accident happened at the time it did, rather than
several hours earlier when many lives would
rrobablv have been lost. There was no urgent
call for the elevator when the pawls stopped the
motion of the After releasing the paws
Nelson evidently intended to see il the car was
IN good working order. That is the only reason
given fo~ his action in taking trip up In it,
Henry Tammany. working on the ninth floor Of
the building, says that Nelson, on the last up
ward trip Of the elevator. Was on the top Of the
car. He is positive that he was not inside OF il.
The only person within the car that he could
see was the eleva;or-man. Tammany saw the
car plunge downward hut ii fell so quickly that
he could not tel whether or not the engineer
on the roof
The crash of the falling elevator caused all on
the upper stories TO run down stairs When some
Of them reached the basement, they beheld
CHASTITY sight The elevator twisted out of
shape as though II had been a toy. The roof
was nearly touching the splintered floor, and the
sides had been beaten in and out. About the
BODY Of the car seemed TO be a hundred pieces
o. iron ropes twisted into peculiar shapes. To
make matters worse, the hydraulic pipes which
formed part Of the machinery that lifted the
car, had burst and the water gushed into the
wrecked elevator.
EXTRICATING THE BODIES.
The work Of extricating those IN the was
and I'd f,r II vii u
ger as the electric wire In the tangled mess
Charged all the iron ana set fire to some OF the
broken boards The steam that poured forth
nom 'he pipe however. put out the FIRE.
An alarm Of FIRE brought several engines and
nook and ladder companies While talf dozen
policemen and willing hands were grdping about
IN the 5ssa ment ready 20 d. something TO get
t1e men In the elevator out. bu; afraid to touch
'ne car, As It's sides we're touched By the broken
seclric wires. The firemen with their axes ar
'Ved They IN about five minutes had the
woodwork chopped away. but they. too were
e''"d 10 disturb the ruins Of the car until the
''eetrc light current was turned OF.
WIEN the hrenen touched what remained OF
.s bottom OF the car they found the l!felcs5
~, 's o. the elevator man and the engineer.
e heads OK both were battered so muCh that It
Almost impossible 70 recognize them. The
s es nearly touched each other hasty
h'nat'Gn OF the shattered roof Of thc car
80. mat 1t was possible for a person to
,.s' hroagh it and fall alongside OF the man
na,,. 0"ng to the appearance Of the roof
wss Nsohs were of the opinion that Nelson
" he top Of the elevator when II fell