The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-10-30
A GREAT BUILDING
LEAPS INTO The AIR
Thirty Bodies May be Under
Wrecked Houses.
A TERRIFIC EXPLOSION
Fire Began in Tarrant's Drug House,
Which Was Blown Up.
THE STREETS ARE FILLED WITH DEBRIS
Warren Street Station of the Ninth Elevated
Road Wrecked by Explosion. Officials Of
Irving Bank Fly Leaving Thous-
ants scattered IN Floor.
(By Associated Press.)

ancSS CalleIeQ (r I loot.
(By Associated Press.)
New York, Oct. 29.-As the result of
small fire several successive explosions
of chemicals occurred in the drug store
at Warren and Greenwich streets to-
day and blew down a dozen buildings and
badly damaged a score of others. The
loss of life is not known, but from all
sources of information it is gathered that
there are bodies of thirty persons in the
ruins, though because of the debris and
slowness of the moving of it, no body
had been removed up to midnight.
The disaster was one of the most terri
BILE that has ever occurred in this city.
Chief Croker of the Fire Department, said
tonight that the loss is fully $1,500,0O0.
There are thirty-fve persons reported
missing and one hundred men, women
and children are on the list of the in
jured.
Search for bodies is going on and will
be continued all night.
STORY OF THE DISASTER.
The long list of horrors that
New York. list that includes the
Royal hotel fire, the Park place disaster,
and the Windsor and Hoboken fires, was
added to today by fire and explosion
that shook the lower end of Manhattan
like an earthquake, hurled seven story
building into the air, and set fire to
two blocks of buildings, with a loss of
life that only the efforts of the hundreds
Of -bO To bo of
digging away the ruins as soon as the
fire was extinguished will reveal.
The big building of Tarrant and Com
pany makers of medicinal specialties,
standing at the northwest corner of
Greenwich and Warren streets, and filled
with chemicals, took fire in some way
that may never be known, at about
quarter after twelve o'clock this after
noon. 1t was sixteen minutes after noon
that a citizen rushed into the house of
fire engine 20, on Chambers street, near
Greenwich, and shouted that Tarrants
drug house was on fire. He had seen
valume of black smoke coming from the
third story window. An alarm was turned
in.
THE FIRST EXPLOSION.
Soon afterwards second and third
alarms were turned in One fire company
had just arrived when a terrific explo-
sion occurred and threw the entire en-
gine's crew down the stairway. The fire
men, realizing the danger Of their posi-
tion rushed out Of the building The
explosion had filled the street in front
with a shower of falling glass and small
debris, which sent the crowd, which was
already gathered on the opposite side
walks, fleeing for safety, and caused the
horses hitched to the engines to rear and
try to get away. Engineer Rocksberry
was unfastening the horses and Fireman
Brown, of the company, was turning the
safety valve of the engine when the ex-
plosion occurred and covered them with
a shower of glass. Both were injured
as was another firemean belonging to the
company.
Capt. Devanney, of the company order
ed his crew back into the building again.
They were dragging the line to the door
way for the second time when anothcr
explosion, more terrific than the first,
came and the whole crew was hurled
across Greenwich street, Devanney be-
ing SO badly injured that he was sent
to a hospital. In the meantime the other
engines that had responded to the alarm
had collected and the firemen were busy
rescuing people from surrounding build
ings. Firemen had already taken many
girls down the only fire escape of the res
taurant next door, and the buildings ad-
joining upon Warren street
BUILDING LEAPS INTO THE AIR.
The second explosion occurred about
five minutes after the first. From the ac-
counts of witnesses. the building seem
ed to leap into the air, and in a moment
masses of brick wall, timbcrs and stone
were falling into the streets. The force
of the explosion tore away the walls of the
Washington street, and caused them to
collapse, falling at once in a mass of
flames which burst out from the Tar
rant building like the belching of a can
non, at once broke forth. Across War
rem street to the opposite buildings the
flames leaped, setting them all afre at
once, the force of the explosion demoI-
ishpg windows and all wooden struc-
lures about the houses. In a moment
Warren street was checked up with q
mass of debris and the whole place wds
aflame.
SERIES OF EXPLOSIONS.
The great explosion was followed by
half a dozen more scarcely less intense,
and by a countless number of smaller
ones. BY this time the fire apparatus