New-York tribune., 1899-02-13
WENT DOWN WITH THE ROOF.
MIRACULOUS ESCAPE OF FIREMEN Al
NILSSON HALL.
EIGHT DROPPED THIRTY FEET WITH The
WRECKED ROOF. But ONLY TWO
WE'RE HURT BADLY ENOUGH
TO NEED HOSPITAL
ATTENDANCE.

1-iOb, hremen attached to Hook ana Lauuer
Company No. 3. in East Thirteenth-st' had
,,,roculous ESCAPE from serious injury If not In
slant death yesterday morning in the prosIess
Of q fire which nearly destroyed Nilsson nan
-. o,a landmark. at Nos 1872 and 134 East FIJI
+enth-st. These men. all Of whom were on the
roof Of the burning building at the time feH
with the roof and were precipltated to the hoor'
some thirty feet below. OF the eight who were
thrown 10 the floor below by the collapse OF the
roof only two were so badly hurt as to require
their transfer to a hospital The injured are
AARoNs ALFRED A. no~a broken and bodily bruises
10 Bellevue Hospital.
FOLEY. DAVID. slight injuries to his home
MURPHY. FRANK. bruises his home
mpoxouoM w5AM Gq %.n e. cessf Ysf moips r14 sSi
SHERLOCK. JAMES. contusions to his home
The other three men were able to continue
with their work.
Nilsson Hall is a two-story brick puild'ns'
whose dimensions are 20 feet by 100 feet IT Is
situated directly in the rear OF the Academy OF
Music in Fourteenth-st.. and IS connected with
that building when the occasion should require
large iron doors separating the two structures
IL was formerly used annex TO the Acad-
emy Of Music. suppers being given there on the
occasion Of great balls in the Academy. Latter
". however. it has been utilized only for dances
and private or semi public balls.
A ball was given in the hall on Saturday night
the last guests leaving the place somewhere be-
tween 4 and 30 o'clock yesterday morning. A
few minutes after o'clock citizen who was
passing through East Fifteenth-st. saw smoke
issuing from the upper part of the building ana
ran 10 a signal-box near by and turned in an
alarm. At almost the same moment Patrolman
Heaney of the East Twenty second-st. station.
saw the flames and ran to the house of Hook
and Ladder Company No. g. in East Thirteenth
ST. and told the fremen Of the blaze. BY the
time the first detachment Of firemen reached
the scene the flames were burning merrily along
the roof Of the building. Its propnquity TO the
Academy Of Music. Tammany Hall and Tony
Pastors Theatre made the situation dangerous
one to the neghborhood, and Immediately upon
his arrival at the fire Captain David Meagher' or
Hook and Ladder Company No. 3, sent in
second alarm which was followed by third call
for assistance from Chief Bonner who then
reached the scene.
The hall itself is simply large ballroom with
nothing but the galleries between the floor and
the ceiling 1t did not take the fremen long 10
get control of the flames. which they confined to
the upper part Of the structure principally. The
ceiling of the hail is what is known a hang
ing ceiling. and In order TO put out all the nre
which might be lurking between the ceiling and
the roof eight men Of Hook and Ladder COM
panv No 3 were sent to the roof to cut away the
timbers. These men were Firemen Alfred A
Holden, William J. McDonough, Frank Murphy
James Sherlock. David Foley, Alexander Cum
usk Mark Kelly and Alfred A AarOns.
These men were working about in the middle
ri the roof when, without note of warning the
roof doubtless weakened at its sides by the
flames fell in and carried the fremen down with
Il. 1t fell with a crash, and the outlet sent
cloud Of smoke and a burst Of flame with II.
Chief Bonner heard the crash and saw the dan
ger Of his men. He ordered other men into the
building 10 their comrades. who were in
the pile of debris which had formed on the ball
room floor The men, nerved by excitement
rushed into the building and succeeded in drag
gng out their comrades before serious harm
had come TO them In some way-Chief Bonner
described II as little less than miraculOus-the
hremen had fallen on the roof as ii went down.
and not under ii. and had not been imprisoned
by heavy timbers or burning rafters.
The work Of rescuing the fremen attended
by more excitement among the crowd Of early
curiosity seekers than among the fremen them
selves. Rumor had II that all Of the men had
been killed or injured. and calls for ambulances
from Bellevue Hospital. the New-YOrk Hos
pital and St. Nincent's Hospital were sent in.
Two ambuances arrived from Bellevue Hospital
and one each from the New-YOrk Hospital and
ST. Nincents Hospital. Mrs. Mansfield who con-
ducts boarding house at No. 1873 East Fif-
feenth-st., directly opposite opened the doors
of her house 10 the injured firemen, and they
were examined 10y the surgeons they
reached the spot It found that only
AarOns. who had suffered fracture Of the nose
by falling and had received contusions about the
body, and McDOnOugh whose legs were caught
under timber We're the only ones who required
hospital attendance Three Of the others. slight
~ hurt. We're excused 10 go TO their homes. and
the others Immediately returned to their work
The building was practically wrecked. 1t is
owned by +. 6. Gilmore. who places the loss at
10000 1t is leased TO William J. Leahy The
hremen worked to great disadvantage by
reason Of the excessive cold. but Mrs Mansfield
and the proprietor Of the Hotel jefferson near
by, gave them generous supply Of hot coffee
as they worked. The origin Of the fire is not
known.
MANHATTAN BRASS COMPANY SUFFERS.
THE FACTORY BUILDING IL EAST TWENTY