The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-12-24
ONE DEAD
GREAT PERIL E. h.
IN THE FIRE.

len IHE FlRE
Continued from First page.)
blaze until his body, limp in death, fell
through the trestlc to the ground below.
tIkloMEN'S GOOD WORK.
Meanwhile fire engines Nos. 2 and S
were on the scent, and at great personal
risk to themselves the 4firemen advanced
near enough to the flaming tank Of nap
tina to turn two Strea ms 3On it. However,
it was fifteen or twenty minutes later
before they were able to lift out the body
of Wakefield, which lay In front Of them,
with the burning oil and water dripping
on it. The fire1nent fought iiercely, han
dicappeG by a weak water pressure, and
some thirty minutes after the alarm was
turned i'll were able to get to Waketield's
body. NIcCauley had picked himself up,
and after n few minutes was at work
helping the tiremen.
The explosion which Killed Wakefield
had served to scatter the flames right and
left, and these flames Immediately igniteo
the dweiling-housc, occupied by negroes,
to the immediate west of the trestle.
while a. large quantity of burning naptha
was scattered over the stationary naptha
tank to the immediate east of the trestlc.
Ii was from this source that the great
est danger was expected, and hence every
effort of the 1iremen was for the time
being directed there. After these flames
had been cxtinguished, attention was
turned to the burning dwelling and it
was flooded with water.
THOUSANDS SAW FLAMES.
Meanwhile thousands and thousands OF
persons had gathered to witness the Srea,
fire. The vast amphirheatre formed by
Lichy Fill and Chimborazo Park held.
silhouettcd against the sky, many thous-
ands of spectators. At every small crack
ling of the fire these scattered fn-cvery
direction, and as word had gone forth
from the firemen that there might be at
any moment another explosion, the eager
and curious public gave them all the
room they wanted to work in. Then, too,
the smoke was sitting. Thick, black an.
apparently compact, for q time ltArose
straight i'll the air, but every gust OF
wind sent it. freighted with the odol
of oil. into the faces Of spectators, and
this was enough to keep them back.
Spcctacularly. tho fire was gorgeous.
In some manner the naptha had cauSh.
from the open top of the car tank ana
went straight heavenward for a distance
Of eighty or a hundred feet. The flames
were brilliant and rolling, without the
sparks which usually accompany q fire,
anu lIlpHilitl ny IL tISIiiSiitObS WI
umc of black smoke. Meanwhile, through
the leak III tho puttjfn OF the tank, the
naptha was pouring GOWN on to and alons
the trestlc and thence to the ground. and
despite the constant streams Of water
on it burned fiercely. as might some great
pyrotechniC display The trcstle, for
distance of q hundred feet, was weak
ened, and at one time it was feared that
: the structure. under the tremendous
weight OF the car of tar, the tank car
and the coal cars, would fall but after
the firemen had been at work some time
this danger was removed.
GAS. WORKS IN DANGER.
AS the fire grew at first the flames
spread along the trestle toward the Seas
Works but Chief Pullcr's men were tight
there and stopped this, the danger to
the Gas Works proper covering only a
period OF five or ten sn:nuIce. It Will be
necessary, however, TO rebuild the trestle
The negro house to the immediate west
OF the trestle was occupied by two fam
lilies, that OF Johnson Lawson, q .aborer,
and James Smith. Lawson, who works at
night was asleep in the house, but he
needed only the explosion to awake him,
and when it came he took to the street.
He didn't have on any great amount OF
clothes, tut afterwards went pack ana
donned a pollyslot attire that satisfied
him for the time being. Then, like all
others, he Went to work to stay the pro
gress Of the flames. This house was NO.
5000 Williamsburg Avenue. The damage
was principally to the furniture through
water ana the insurance on the building
was $500.
ARNITAGE PLANT. SAFE.
Directly behind the naptha tank the
freight car loaded wth5tar for the Armi-
tage Manufacturing Company was stand
ing. Immediately after the explosion OF
naptha this car caught fire ana was To-
tally destroyed. y. one time it so threat
ened the Armitage plant that the con-
meeting bridge between the plant and the
side track extending across behind the
negro residence, was torn out.
At the time of the explosion several
men were engaged in unloading one OF
the coal cars which was consigned to the
Gas Works. and the force was SO great
that the men were thrown or 1eapeu from
the top Of the coal car to the roof OF
the building directly beneath. These men,
ali employees of the gas plant, were ''os
seph Fernandez, Timothy Samuels. Lewis
Throckmorton ana Augustus Oconi'N'
None of them We're hurt
incidentally, during the fire President
Frischkorn, of the Fire Department, VINO
was moving around on his own account,
went into that part Of the negro house
occupied by Lawson, and finding turkey
raising a disturbance. took possession OF
it. He took this Christmas gift ana
placed in Chief Puler's wagon Tor 1ur-
Their orders, and there, after an hoGr or
so. it was found by Mary Lawson, Tie
aged wife OF the negro, who wanted to
know who had swiped her turkey:
"Saycd man Christmas dinner, anyhow,
She said to herself, as She strolled away
with it.
While there were no fatal results by
the explosion at the Giliie's Creek end OF
the sewerage, the terrible burst of flame
and smoke from the mouth of the brick
culvert, spread CONSERVATION III that 10
cality
high into the air rained upon the roofs ct
neighboring dwellings in their descent ana
from this mouth of the blind ditch WHEN
...ar frirn ed with ice burst at inst. owe