The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-07-01

bows were slightly burned.
Five minutes after the FIRE broke out
woman jumped from one of the ships in
vain effort to reach the water. The flames
drove her from the ship and she plunged
heedlessly in the direction in which it
seemed that safety lay. she leaped into
burning lighter alongside the ship. and
when an officer on board the ship, who still
stood by the doomed vessel, saw her, and
realized what would be her fate he plunged
down after her. hoping to drag her out of
the burning lighter into the water. He fol-
lowed her within a couple of seconds and
both went down into the flames in the
lighter and perished.
THE WIND SHIFTED.
The rapid spread OF the flames Is ac-
counted for by the shifting of the wind.
When the fire first broke out the wind was
blowing strongly from the south. This
drove the flames across to the pier, above
the one in which it started Within few
moments the wind shifted almost directly
to the opposite point. Under the great pa
vilion on the land end The flames were soon
in absolute control. Had not dynamite been
used to destroy the Hamburg pier, the
flames might have gone on. All fire boats
and tugs in the harbor would not have
stopped them.
The flames in the cation kept the fire at
anyintense heat, and the firemen suffered
greatly. Again and again it seemed as if
they must abandon the fight. The vantage
| points at which they could attack the
flames were few, and their efforts were
necessarily hampered. Some of the fire.
men of hook and ladder truck No. .. of
Es.4.
| had got out as fast as they could on the
| pier to the south of the blazing docks and
| were endeavoring to recover bodies of per-
sons who might have got under it. There
was a burst of flame from the pier ai-
| joining which for time threatened to cut
| off the men and set fire to the pis2. The
| men dropped into the water and clung to
| the piles for few moments, and then
| shift of the wind drove the flames back and
| they were able TO retreat.
| The smoke which poured out Of the
| flames and ascended high into the air blew
almost directly eastward and maintained
| its column for distance of about seventy
| miles, as it was seen clearly at Babylon,
| i. 1.
| HOW ONE LIFE WAS SAVED.
| One man in the hospital, badly burned
| about the hands and face, said he was
| rescued by another man more severely
burned than himself. He said he was help
less in the water when the other threw an
| arm about him and buoyed him up. The
| others face was fearfully burned and the
| other arm was useless, but he treaded
\ water and .scate = Nlftily that they
l fioated down the ri.er and a tug went to
| their rescue. The man who told the story
| said he tainted after being rescued, and did
| not know If his rescuer had also been taken
| cut of the water.
| An idea of the intensity of the heat was
| given by the fact the steamship firemen,
| men who are used to working in the fire.
| room of vessel supposed TO be the hottest
| place where any human being works. fell
| back from the work OF fighting the flames,
| overcome by the heat.
| Some of these who went into the water
| and were rescued, and but slightly injured.
| say that when others who were caught be-
| tween the fire and water saw death coming
| they went insane. Men babbled of home
/ and friends during the few brief moments
| that they and the others faced death. The
| fear of the furnace which lay between them
| and the land bereft them of their senses.
| There were acts of cowardice well as
| heroism. Men chung TO others and refused
| to let go, even though the act meant death
/ to BOTH One of the survivors was seized
| by another man, who clung to him franti-
| cally and refused to let go. The man, who
| was later saved, had to beat his compan-
| ion into insensibility before he could loosen
| his hold and plunge into the water.
The loss of their hose crippled the Ho-
| boken firemen. When they reached the fire
at first they set out TO confine it to the pier
| on which it started. They got their lines
| out on the two adjoining, and even ran
| their apparatus out TO pump from the river.
| When the flames spread, the hose on the
| piers was lost. Some of the apparatus mar
| rowly escaped being burned, and as it was
| one hose cart and its horse was lost. Later
| Jersey City stripped itself of all the hose
! possible and sent it TO the Hoboken firemen
| in wagon for use. With this streams were
| later got on the fire, but it was then under
| control. having burned itself out.
| DUST CAUSED RAPID SPREAD.
The rapid spread of the flames after they
| started in the cotton is largely ascribed TO
the dust with which the pier sheds and
/ rotunda was covered. The dust arising from
the many different articles, such as cotton,
| and in every crevice. 1t is said to burn
| almost as rapidly as tinder and it is be-
| lieved it was this which caused the first
| awful rush of fire which engulfed the whole
land end of the dock property. 1t carried
| the flames TO every portion of the build
| ings in an instant and then the great heat
! which developed made the work of de-
| struction rapid
The destruction of the docks will be a
severe loss TO the steamship company, as
ii had only just finished repairing. enlarg-
ing and improving its terminal facilities.
All the hospitals in Hoboken and this
| city are crowded with the victims Of the
| fire. There are scores of men burned 50
badly that little hope is entertained for
their recovery. Hudson-street Hospital has
every patient that II can possibly take care
of. as has also Bellevue, st. Vincent's and
| many of the hospitals further up town.
There were over two hundred persons taken
| to the hospitals up TO 10 o'clock tonight
| and sufferers were still coming in by the
score. All kinds of vehicles were brought
into requisitIon as ambulances. Saloons.
| stores. many other buildings that happened
TO be open along the river front OF Hoboken
1 int Ia "a.