The age-herald., 1900-03-17
INVESTIGATION IS
 BROUGHT TO CLOSE Committee Practically CompIet-
 ed Its Work Yesterday. WILL FORMULATE REPORT All-Important Question Remains Un- answered-Lack of Water Pressure
 at Recent Fire Was Clearly
 Shown-More Witnesses
WILL FORMULATE REPORT

1 The investigation of the Metropolitan ho- | tel fire has ended but the inability of the | fire department to control the fire earlier | than they did is still unanswered ques- | ton. That there was a marked diminution | OF pressure at one time was established l beyond doubt, but the cause of it one | was able to explain.
 | The joint committees of the Commercial l club, the Board of Trade and the city | council, which have held daily sessions in the Commercial club rooms since Monday, adjourned yesterday afternoon, subject to | the call of the chairman. In their five | days of investigation and inquiry they ex- | amaned "a large number of witnesses, mem- | bers of tine fire department, officials of the | Birmingham Water Works company and | others, but nothing definite on which to
 base an unqualified conclusion was ascer- l tained.
 | Before the committees adjourned yester- l day afternoon Superintendent Reyer of the | water works company agreed to furnish ! the committees with blue print of the | system of water mains and pipe in the city | and as soon as he does this Judge Banks | will call the committees together again
 to make up the report This will prolba- bly be within the next ten days two weeks.
 Engineer Massey
 | The first witness before the committee l yesterday was c. c. Massey, engineer at l the Northside department. He said: q | was in charge of the engine at Morris | avenue and Twentieth street during the | Metropolitan fire. After the engine at | First avenue and Twentieth street became disabled I noticed the stream from that point. am of the opinion that the little engine remained there until the big engine | was brought up. The hose remained con- l nected with the engine. There was hardly any force after the engine stopped. The natural pressure of the water dimln- ished some in passing through the engine. | I think the loss of pressure at that point was due to the water passing through | the engine and two Hines of hose. I had no trouble with the stream from my engine | and had all the water I wanted. Plug | pressure has effect the pressure the l engine gives a stream. The Siamese hose | was connected with my engine a part of | the time. I think the Siamese hose was | connected with the Nellie R. Raps at First | avenue and Twentieth street for while, l though ann not sure of th1s The capacity of my engine is 450 gallons per minute ! l had about 110 120 pounds pressure all | the time during the fire. I couldn't get | any higher pressure and discharge two streams of water. The streams from First ] avenue and Twentieth street grew stronger l when the big engine was connected with | them. l repaired the Nellie R. Raps, and l could have run it all the time if it had | been my engine.
 'A6ter the Caldwell hotel fire test was made the Southside and one plug fur nished all the water two engines needed" It was explained kllat this test was l made from a four-inch connection drawing water from the 24-inch main.
 The condition of the engine at First avenue and Twentieth street would have had no effect on the pressure at First ave nue and Nineteenth street."
 The City Engineer Julian Kendrick, city engineer-"I have been city engineer since 1891. I have a gen. eral idea of the water works system but don't know the size of the mains. I got to l the Metropolitan fire about 1:15 o'clock, but | left some time afterwards and was away l until about o'clock. At one time noticed | that all the streams, except the one from Massey's engine, got very low. My im-
 
 avenue and Twentieth street. was discon- l nected and the hose connected with the plug. The diminlItion of pressure was very | marked. Before it fell off streams were l carried with good force to the top of the building. The loss seemed to be sudden and l for about half hour the firemen could | hardly throw water from where they stood | in the street ito the building. When the | pressure was restored good, strong streams 1 were thrown"
 | The balance of MT. Hendricks testimony | was based mostly on hypothetical proposi- | tions and had special reference to the effect on the pressure down town by leaks the 1 closing of valves along the 24-inch main 1 month of Avenue B, where the 16-inch main l taps it.
 T. B. Merriweather T. B. Merriweather, foreman for the wa | ter works company, testified with refer | ence to the broken valve at Morris avenue | and Twenty-second street. He said. "A 1 broken valve was found at Morris avenue | and Twenty-second street the day before I the fire It was repaired the night after the | fire Water shooting out of the valve 1 during the fire, at an opening about | inch and half in diameter, but it had | no effect on the flow of water in the main. working on the valve when some one came along and told me there a | big fire down town. That was about 1 | o'clock. I stopped the men from work and | got on my wheel and went to Twentieth street, where I saw big crowd of people | and large volume of smoke coming from the Metropolitan hotel I then went to the office in Third avenue to get piece of | wood to drive in the opening, but not find ing what I wanted I went back to the | broken valve. had cut off five valves, one near the railroads and Twenty-second street. one at Morris avenue and Twenty second street, two at First avenue and | 1'Wenty-second avenue, and one In Twenty