Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-01-01
FIRE, SMOKE AND WATER.
The Riverside Hospital Gets Plenty of
Each.

What was once beautiful and well
appointed hospital is now badly dam
aged and smoked up affair, and it was
by persistent hard labor that the same
was saved at ALL On Wednesday even
ing, shortly before o'clock, one of the
nurses, while in the hall on the second
door, smelled what appeared to be rags
burning, and ran down stairs to make
an investigation. Meeting the head
nurse at the foot of the stairway, both
proceeded down the hall to the dining
room. They opened the door leading
into the same but Immediately closed
it for the room was all afiame They
ran to the office room of DIR. Eicher, the
resident hospital physician, and in
formed him of the danger. After turn
ing in an alarm of fire the doctor and
attendants set to work removing the
|patients. Both fire companies respond
ed and worked hard for fully an hour
and half. The cause of tb> fire is not
known. From the inter it appears
that it had its origination in clothes
closet in one of the rooms in the rear,
dsed as sleeping cnamber by the nurs-
IS, and probably caught from a lamp.
The flames spread rapidly, and eating
Gheir way between the outer and inner
walls, followed the same to the second
floor, spreading between the ceiling
md roof. AT one time the whole upper
part of the building was ablaze and 1t
looked as if nothing could save it from
obstruction, but the fremen's efforts
were finally crowned with success. At
the time of the fire fortunately there
were not many patients in the hospital,
only sixteen, and these were all able to
walk with the exception of two.
The attendants took the matter cool
ly, informing the patients of the fire in
such way as not to excite them, they
were removed from the building in
safety. Those able to walk, dressed and
were taken away, while the others were
wrapped in blankets and carried out
The proprietors of the Farmers Home
and also Gottlieb Anderes kindly threw
open their houses for the receiving of
patients. Eight were taken to the
Farmers Home, and five to the new
hotel of Gottlieb Anderes, while three
we're placed in the nurses home.
The main ward located on the second
door in the rear of the building was at
one time entirely cut off by the flames
somebody told the fremen that there
was patient confined to this room, a
ladder was raised to window and the
same broken in and a fireman entered
the room and made a search of the same
this being repeated several times, but
40 one could be found, for the patients
mad all been removed beforehand.
The damage to the building is quite
severe and will figure in the neighbor-
b. ri of $4,000 This loss is covered by
policies held in the insurance agency of
j. N. Manson amounting to $1,000 on
the building and 50, 600 on the contents.
That part of the interior not burned is
damaged by smoke an water. The
roof is so badly burned that it will have
TO be replaced by new one. The
woodwork in places is badly burned
and the building will have to be replas-
tered throughout. Medicines, surgical
instruments and appliances were more
or less damaged.
The building is the property of the
Evangelical Lutheran Hospital associa-
ton. The hospital has been a paying,
as well as beneficial institution, and
will be repaired as soon as the insur-
ance adjusters get through with their
work. 1t was the intention of the asso-
citation to enlarge the institution next
spring, and foundation walls had al
ready been constructed and material
placed on the ground for the same, and
these plans will not very likely be al
tered.
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