The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-03-13
FOURTEEN BURNED TO DEATH.
NEWARK THE SCENE OF TERRIBLE
CONFEDERATION.

Italians Their Lives-Many Others
Were Injured-NarrOVy Halls Pre-
vented Their Escape-Credanza
one of the Tenants Is in Jail Under
Suspicion.
New York, March 12-Fourteen persons
lost their lives, two persons were serious
" injured and many others slightly burn
cd in a fire in Newark, N. J., this morn
ing.
The firemen, after the flames had been
subdued, took thirteen bodies from the
rims. and while they were thus engaged
another victim of the fire died in the city
hospital.
one family was wiped out completely
and of another only the father lives and
he is in the city hospital where it is be-
Heved he will die.
The list of dead and injured follows,
the killed being Bold, Nunziata, As years
od. wife of Salvatore Bold; Boldi, Tere-
sa, years old, daughter of Salvatore
Bold; castillo, Angela, % years old, wife
Of Uggenio castillo; castillo, Benninita, /
years old, daughter of Uggenio castillo;
castillo, Antonio, years old, son of Ug-
Eetliu NdSIIO, NdSlIlOi II ldiIhs At2 NNdiS
old, son of Uggenio castillo; castillo, Car
NINA, 1 year old, daughter of Uggenio
castillo; Palmisano, Antonio, 50 years old;
Palmisano, Sebastiana, wife of Antonio;
Palmisano, Guiseppa, 7 years old,
daughter of Antonio Palmisano.
Palmisano, Nunziata, 1-year-old daughter
of Antonio Rosso, Angelo, unmarried,
died at city hospital of fractured skull.
and an unidentified body of child about
years old.
Those seriously injured are Bold, Sal
vatore, burned about hands in escaping
from the building and castillo, Uggenio, at
city hospital, suffering from contusions
sustained by jumping from a window.
Was q NeritabIe Fire Trap.
The building in which the fire broke
out was veritable fire trap. 1t was old,
of frame construction and extended two
stories above the ground floor. Until
three O. Four years ago the structure had
been Ls<s' as a church, but it was con
verted into a tenement. The lower floor,
fronting Oh 90 81 and 81 Fourteenth avenue,
was occupied by three stores, and the up
per portion of the building was divided
into twenty living rooms.
AS nearly as can be learned, the struc-
ture was occupied by ten families, all
Italians Two of the occupants, Vito Gre
danza and one other family, kept board
ers, though the total population of the
rookery could not be definitely ascertained
during the excitement attending the fire
There are said to have been forty or fifty
persons of both sexes and all ages in the
building when the fire started.
The police are confident that the fire
was of incendiary origin and they have
arrested Vito Credanza on suspicion.
There was disorderly card game in one of
the rooms that lasted well into the morn
ing. Credanza was a participant and is
said to have made violent threats against
his fellow players.
NeighbOrhOOd Called Out.
A few minutes before O'Clock everyone
in the building was awakened by the
flames. They found the house burning at
the foot of the stairs leading from the
first to the second story The hallway
and the stairs were burning fiercely, cut
ting off the only egress from the upper
floor on which six families lived. 1t also
cut off the escape by the door for those
who lived in the rear part of the first
floor Those who could made for the
windows. From these they leaped or
dropped.
The whole neighborhood was awake in
an instant and from the burning build
ing came agonizing screams and calls for
help. From the basem MT and ground floor
the inmates of the building poured naked
or almost so. From the upper story men
and women leaped to the sidewalk
By the time the firemen reached the
scene the building was wrapped in flames
and those who had not escaped were dead
or doomed They must have died within
a few minutes for the fire rushed through
every room in the building within ten
minutes.
There was fearful excitement about the
burning build ng. Men, women and chill
dren who escaped from the building rush
ed about almost naked, locking for their
relatives.
For a time it was thought there were
many more lost than the events later
proved, because several naked We're pick
ed up by neig hhors and carried indoors
Thus fathers and mothers missed their
children and rushed screaming about
The fire lasted only few minutes. The
search for the dead began within twenty
minutes after the alarm was sounded, so
quickly was the fire conquered.
Nc Escape for Them.
Every room empties its occupants into
those narrow little halls and there was
no escape for the frightened tenants be
cause of the jam. and they could not
get out. There were at least twelve fam
Lies in the place, sixty persons in all. OF
WhOn, perhaps, Hfty were CIldItH, uild-
bic to care for themselves, especially in
time of such great excitement.
Four men ran TO a front window and
jumped TO the street Several were hurt
and later sent to the hospitals.
The flames spread with frightful rapid
ity and the keen March wind blowing
sent the sparks to the southeast and
threatened all the frame tenements in thar
direction. The place was like a roaring
caldron when the fremen reached the
place, The ladders were quickly put in
position and then began the work OF res
cue.
one after another the women and then
the men were taken down, while other
tremeu devoted their attention to drown.
ing out the flames. This they succeeded
IN doing in less than an hour, but during
that hour a frightful sacrifice had been Of
fered
Nearly every room in the house con-
tanned its victim Few were really burn
ia Aaath Most Of thaD1 wara sn,At h.