Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-02-01
WHOLE BLOCK BURNS
Explosion in New York Sugar Fac
tory Starts Big Fire.
DAMAGE PLACED AT $l,5O0,0O0
Several Persons Injured and a
Policeman Missing.
FIRE ENGINES WRECKED

NEW YORK, February 1.-The extent Of
| the destruction wrought by the confiagra-
ton which destroyed nearly whole block
of buildings at 31st street and 1st avenue
last night could be better appreciated when
| day dawned this morning. The huge fac
tory Of the William Wicke Company was
| almost level with the ground Contractor
Joseph Cody Of the building department.
| with force of 100 men. had labored at the
ruins all night pulling down dangerous
sections of wall. At Z o'clock this morning
! they were at work on 4 portion of the wall
| at Slst street and 1st avenue which
looked like a big chimney as It stood alone
ana threatened to fall at any moment
other property destroyed was the six-story
factory building. Nos 4o4, 400 and 4OS East
oEu street. the hEe-story tenement at 54.;
ana o4S Ist avenue; the five-story tenement
4o2 East 31st street: Jackson's Iron foundry
extending from 4o2 East 3lst street to the
river, ana a two-story brick building on 3lst
| street occupied by the Swift Dressed Beef
Company.
The property partially DESTROYED includes
| the tenements at $50 and 55o Ist avanI'o
| a22 and 524 1st avenue.
| Seventy Families Homeless
| About seventy families were rendered
homeless by the burning of the tenements.
Bockhout's lumber yard on the north sill.
ol 5oth street between 1st avenue and the
river was still burning seriously at
clock this morning, but the firelnen with
three powerful streams from the freboat
DAVID A. Boody and two streams from
engine No. 10 were able to keep the flames
from extending further at that point
tlre Chief Croker today repeated the
statement he made last night to the effect
that he believed the fire was caused by an
explosion of chemicals in the Wicke fac
a info
had gone into the vault in the cellar with
light and that the vault contained the
explosives. The chief added that he did not
know what had become of the watchman
or who he was. When asked If the eX-
plosion that started the confiagra ton might
not have been caused by illumina ting gas
getting into the cellar from a gas main.
Chief Croker said that it possible, but
he did not think Illuminating gas was re-
sponsible for the fire
The Avenue G and Belt line cars We're
still blocked this morning, and probably
will be prevented from running over that
portion of the route the greater part of
the day.
Damage to Fire Department.
One of the features of the fire was the
damage suffered by the fire department to
its apparatus. Engine No. 81 was almost
completely wrecked as it stood at the hy-
drant in front of the burning building.
Water tower No. 3, which had been placed
IN pOSltl0n IN front OF the burning Factory,
was also badly damaged and will have to
be entirely overhauled before 1t be
used. Engine No. 33, on its way to the fire,
collided with a car at 14th street and Sd
avenue. Both the car and the engine were
damaged and the engine horses were SO
badly hurt that one of them had to be
shot. Engine No. %, on its way from the
fire to its headquarters in 9Th street, this
morning, broke down. An axle of one Of
the rear wheels snapped
None of the tiremen was hurt. The fire
department also lost several thousand feet
of hose and connections The hose was
burned as it lay on the street. or was COW
cred by fallen walls. The bitter cold made
the work of the firemen very difficult. After
the flames had been Sot under control those
lines which were almost submerged in wa
ter became frozen to the pavements, and
the firemen had to thaw the connections
with boiling water.
Policeman Thomas J. FitZpatrick who
was sent out on duty at the fire at 6
o'clock last night. has been reported miss
ing.
Wicke Sugar Factory the Victim.
An explosion occurred yesterday after
noon in the sugar factory of the W. Wicke
Company, in East 31st street, New York
city, by which over twenty persons were
injured 1t followed later by one OF
the fercest conflagrations New York has
witnessed in many years, causing an esti-
mated loss of $1,500,0O0.
The burned area in general extent took
in about one city block. The Wicke Com
pany's building, the building abutting 1t
from 32d street and several tenement
houses were among the destroyed build
ngs. Several lumber yards in the vicinity
were considerably damaged. The fire was
witnessed by immense crowds of people.
and, it is said, was the most spectacular
one New York has ever seen.
The panic-stricken occupants of num-
ber of tenements threatened by the fire
We're assisted out by policemen and fire
men. The fire abounded in thrilling Incl
dents but only few persons were i'll
jured, none seriously.
The force of the explosion was tre-
mendous. The disintegrated briclSwork
fell on the engine house, crushing it, and
the concussion of the explosion cracked
the big smokestack-100 feet higher-that
lowered over the engine room.
Nearly 800 persons We're at work In the
factory at the time of the explosion.
Three hundred and fifty of them We're wo-