Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1901-01-12
FIRE KILLED CHILDREN.
Twsnty-eight Dead and Twelve In
jured in Asylum Holocaust.
TWO ADULTS AMONG THE DEAD.

rhe other Victims Ranged I'm Are
From Two to Fourteen Years-Ex-
PlodinE Natural Gas Caused Disas-
ter-ManagersB IaminE Themselves.
Rochester, N. Y, Jan. s.-Twenty-
eight dead bodies lie at the morgue
and IL others, more or less seriously
injured, lie at the different hospitals
In this city as a result of the terrible
holocaust which occurred early yes
terday morning e. the Rochester Or
phan asylum. or the dead 26 were
children of both sexes, ranging In age
from to ID years, while the remaining
two were adults, Mrs. Maria Gordon.
cook, and Miss Martha ellis, nurse.
Ihe hre, which was discovered at lilo
a m. and was doubtless caused by an
explosion OF natural gas in the boiler
room, spread so rapidly that many of
the 109 inmates Of the institution were
overcome by the flames and smoke al
most without warming.
In all the long and dismal record of
fatal fires in Rochester none can be
found which can equal this one In
Its general horror, in the pathetic
scenes in which so many lives were
plotted out, in the gallant sacrifice Of
lives Of the attendants in whose charge
the children were, and IN the sad
scenes at the hospitals and morgue.
That so many children were saved
from the west wing OF the building
seems little short OF miraculous. and
when the ruins were visited yesterday
one marvelled that the death roll was
not even larger. The scene following
almost Immediately upon the discovery
OF the fire and the accompanying ex-
plosion was one which turned the
stoutest hearts sick. The windows of
the west wing were filed with the ter
r1hed faces OF the tiny waits Work
Ing like men possessed the flremen
struggled to release them from their
perilouS position. The rooms of the
dormitory were filled with the smoke
OF the fire, and the little ones were
being slowly sufrocated.
Most OF those rescued were lowered
to the ground by means of ladders
from tho second aRd third stories.
The ambulances from every hospital
In the city reached the scene almost as
soon as the fire department, but they
proved totally inadequate in providing
for those rescued. Many sufferers and
the dead were removed to the houses
III the Immediate neighborhood.
AheiS were AWFUL scenes around the
asylum at this time. Most OF those
rescued from the building were uncon-
scious from the effects OF smoke. II
soon became apparent that the build
Ing was doomed. A general alarm was
sent IN and the entire fire department
was soon on the scene The fire was
stubbornly fought from every avail
able point, but it was over an hour af-
ter its discovery before 1t was under
control.
The fire was first discovered by two
men passing the asylum. They hastily
sent in an alarm, and then turned their
attention toward arousing the nurses
and the children.
There was a joint meeting of the
board OF managers and the trustees of
the asylum yesterday. While all sorts
OF excuses were put forward for the
disaster, there was unanimity in con-
ceding that the managers had been
derelict in that there had not been a
better and more complete system of
hre escapes provided. One, Thomas G.
Montgomery. frankly expressed the
opinion that the managers had been
negligent in that they did not employ
night Waterman at the asylum and
that they had not had the building pa
trolled nightly.