Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1898-01-04
FR|GHTFUL COLLAPSE
5wenty.Four Persons Killed at a
Political Gathering in a
Canadian Town.
FLOOR DROPS UNDER THE CROWD

.
Many Of TheE Under the Sinking Beams
"A Number Of Boys Among the Victims,
and Some Of Them Slowly Crushed to
Death-Terrible Panic Of Those Who
Were Not Caught in the Catastrophe
Names of the Dead and Injured.
London. Ont. Jan. 1.-TWO dozen per-
sons areknown tohave been killed and
many injured by the collapse of a floor
in the city hall last night. The night
closed the municipal campaign, and the
hall was crowded to hear the addresses
OF the successful candidates. The bod
les Of the following have been taken
from the wrecked building and identi-
fled, at this writing: F. Heaman, c.
Beckett, Z. Luexton, n. Carrothers. r.
LEIGH. - Harris. L. W. Burke, ]. Smith,
- Talbot. a. Phillips. John Turner,
Ben Nash. J. W. Borland. - Hii-
burn. Frank Robinson. w. H. Dell,
Stephen Williams. John Fellows, Allen
Towe. James Mclean, John Parridge,
Oswald Bruce, Is. jacques, and an un-
Identified manA
Partial List Of tho Wounded.
The injured, so far as can be learned,
include the following: DIR. Wilson. the
mayor-elect, leg broken: Alderman
Carrothers. slightly injured: Edward
Morkin and - Burgess; William Gray,
leg broken: - Fleming, both arms
broken: William Jones. water commits
sioner-eiect. badly bruised: Joshua
Darch. John Blanch. Alderman Neil
Cooper and - Van Wyck: George w.
Yates. city editor OF The News: Harry
Passmore, reporter on The Advertiser
staff.
Hall Was Packed with People.
Those who We're more seriously in
jured were carried to neighboring drug
stores, whence they We're taken to the
hospital or to their homes after their
injuries had been attended TO. At the
close OF the polls n crowd gathered in
the city hall. where IL has been the
custom for years past for the successful
candidates TO address the electors. The
building was crowded to the very doors,
probably 1000 people being jammed in
its narrow space. There was a lull in
the proceedings, when IN response to
numerous calls r. NJ. Toothe was
pushed forward to the platform on which
the speakers stood. AS ne reached it
there was an ominous cracking ard
the raised platform on which the mayor
and ner',y elected aldermen were seated
seemed pitch forward to the floor.
4 IVY safe on Top of Them.
There as a sagging Of timbers and
the next moment $50 people were hurled
twenty feet to the floor below. A beam
running twenty feet along the center
Of the hall had given way. and the
crowded mass standing above that sec
tion Of the floor was thrown In a heap
to the bottom. a large safe stood in
one corner Of the hall and with a huge
steam coil. weighing half n ton, came
crashing down on the heads Of the
victims.
Following the crash there was a wild
rush for the doors. At the south door,
where the majority Of the crowd had
entered. there was a terrible panic.
Those in front were thrown down by
the on-coming rush, shrieking and
| fighting for the door and safety. Only
one-half of the rear door. a space of
probably three feet, was open, and in
the mad rush no one thought to open
the door In its entirety. and 800 people
| struggled through the narrow space, the
strong bearing down the weaker.