Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1899-08-29
Twelve Thirty ton Steel Arches Fal
From the Top Of the Chicago
Coliseum.
Workmen Carried Down From the
Dizzy Height and Their Lives
Crushed Out.
Many Severely Injured-No Warn
ing Of the Accident Loss 10
$4,000.


perstructure of the Coliseum building,
In course Of erection on Wabash ave-
nue., between Fifteenth and Sixteenth
streets. fell to the ground late yester-
day afternoon. 1t Is known that six
lives were crushed out. The bodies Of
three men are supposed to be under the
wreckage. Seven are In the hospital.
with injuries received In the accident,
and of these two will surely die, one
may possibly recover and the balance
are for the greater part seriously In
jured.
The dead-Charles Walpot, Stephen ].
Thompson, John Fay, Richard Sher-
man, Edward Murray and Theodore
Thorn.
Missing and supposed to be under the
ruins-Frank Logan, Alex Millas and
Samuel Smith.
Fatally injured-John Dowd. both
legs broken. both eyes Knocked out, in
ternal injuries; John White, cut on
head and right side. internal injuries.
Others injured-Cornelius Toomey.
head crushed, internal injuries, may re-
cover; John Geohegan, right hand and
right leg cut, not serious; Peter Pelle-
stere. crushed about shoulders and chest,
serious; John Hawthorne, head cut, in
ternal injuries. serious; Leroy Former,
head cut, not serious
All of the twelve arches We're stand
ing. the twelfth and last having just
been completed. 1t was the intention
of the steel contractors. the Pittsburg
Bridge Company of Pittsburg, Pa. to
turn over its work last night to the gen
eral contractors. The immense tray
eler or derrick, which had been used
in the erection of the arches, had been
removed. and the agents OF the bridge
company We're accounting their work as
practically completed. when suddenly
and without the slightest preliminary
warning the arch last put in place sud-
denly fell over against the one next to
it. The weight was too much for this.
III gave way. crashed against the third,
and then one by one the great steel
spans fell over to the south. precisely
in the same manner as a number of
cards would fall. Nearly all the men
who We're killed We're. at work on top of
the arches, forty feet above the ground
Some of them made futile attempts to
before they could help themselves they
We're hurled to the ground Many Of
4 them uttered piercing shrieks for aid as
they fell. Most of them were killed out
right by the awful nature of their in
/ Juries. The skulls of the unfortunate
men We're crushed into shapeless mass
es, their limbs were cut off as IL by a
monster knife, and they were mangled
xYt Inv, y,
| structure began falling slowly. each
arch being sustained by the cross beams
supporting the entire structure. AS the
mass gained impetus, bars of iron inch
es thick snapped with loud report, and
the great mass moved faster and faster
in its descent To the ground, With a
crash that was heard blocks distant.
the structure fell, leaving the walls
practically uninjured and sending up a
\ great cloud of dust and dirt.
| An immense crowd gathered around
4 the place. and despite the efforts of the
police, who We're close at hand. the peo-
4 pie swarmed over the mass of wreck
age. making desperate but ill-directed
efforts to drag out the dead and to save
the wounded. 1t was only with the
greatest difficulty that the police were
finally able to drive back the crowds
and give the fremen and uninjuree
workmen chance to rescue the unin.
jured. That more men We're not killed
and injured was almost miracle. Full,
fifty men We're at work in the spac,
covered by the arches as they fell A
number of the men fell into small ex
cavations, of which there are many il
the ground beneath the steel works, ant
although somewhat battered UP by thei
tumble. We're saved from the great mas
of steel that crashed down over them
several of them were standing unde
the arches when they commenced t
fall, and running to the side walls, b,
great fortune happened to stand in tn
space left vacant by the surge of tn
arches away from the side walls.
Had the arches fallen to either sid
!, the loss of life must have been mucl
: heavier but they fell true to the south
: ION a line parallel to the side of tn
building, and none of them save tn
, two southern arches fell at all outsid
of the space to be occupied by the build
J. ing.
Some exceedingly narrow escape
> were reported, along with the story @
: how some of the unfortunate workme
:. went to their deaths.
The direct cause of the accident Is nc
:, known and it will probably be severe
: days before 1t is accurately determined
One theory which receives some SUI
port is that shifting of sand beneat
the foundation caused the collapse {
i. the first arch, which brought all til
others to the ground. A story whic
. cannot be substantiated Is that nun
j Der of workmen We're using pulley o
the north arch while they were takin
down some scaffolding that had bee
erected around it. They caused tt
= arch to sway and finally 1t swayed t.
far and fell over.
l.. j. j. Johnson, superintendent of ii
Pittsburg Bridge Company. was unab
10 to advance any cause for the collap
At of the structure, saying he was utter
!. at loss to account for it.
a. I'VE had finished putting the la
= arch." he said. "and had begun takir
I. down the traveller upon which Il
n arches were raised to be set into plac
This work was almost completed. wi
but one or two more beams to be r
4. moved. Then 1 heard the crash al
could hardly believe my eyes when
i'd saw the result of our weeks OF wo
2. destroyed in a minute
I'd The work OF rebuilding will common
Il IT, ~ hot %In1