Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1902-05-01
Hundreds Of Female Employees Rush Pei
Nell for the Exits.
SOME KILLED IN LEAPNe FROM WINDOWS
Policemen and Firemen Are Power
less TO subdue the Frantic Crowd
and Prevent the Human
Disaster.

score OF girls employed In the cigar fac
tory OF Hamburger, Homan G. CO.. branch
Of the American Tobacco company. located
At Tenth street and Washington avenue
The dead are:
MARY GENEVA, aged Is.
HELEN TOLINI. AGED ~.
ELIZABETH TARLINE, aged l..
ANNIE REssCHNEIDER. aged Is.
LOUISA DE SEPT. aged Is.
IDA GREEN agyd 49,
ANNIE FORD. aged 49,
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN. about 20,
whose body is at the morgue.
Fatally Injured.
Mary Mesino. injured Internally, skull
fractured.
Josephine o'Roneo. injured internally.
Unidentified woman. fractured skull un-
conscious.
Of bruises about the body and fractured
limbs.
The building in which the disaster oc-
Cured is a fve-story brick structure, and
reaches an entire block. Twelve hundred
persons we're at work at the time OF the
accident. 80 per cent OF whom we're girls
whose ages range from IL years upward
Baccus, who was janitor OF the building
started for the fifth floor for bail Of twine
The elevator was at the top OF the shaft
and Baccus pulled the rope to bring II
down. He opened the dcor leading to the
shaft, and leaned forward to see where the
carriage was. AS he did so the elevator,
which was descending slowly, struck him
across the back Of the neck. pinioning his
head between the elevator and the floor.
Boy Comes 10 Rescue.
A stock boy released Baccus and cried for
help. The foreman rushed from the build
ing to call an ambulance and Immediately
there was panic among the employees.
Some Of the younger girls Tainted, while
others not being able TO control their feel
ings, cried lire. Instantly there was a mad
rush for the stairway Leading TO Tenth
street. The girls rushed down the narrow
staircase, until they reached bend In
the exit between the second and third
floors.
In their eagerness to escape the fright
ened leaders fell. Others Immediately
following tripped over the struggling mass
OF humanity and In less than q minute
there we're hundreds of children and young
women struggling in the passageway. The
Bhrieks and screams OF terror stricken girls
could be heard for block or more.
During the excitement an alarm Of IRE
was turned In. but before the engines could
reach the scene several OF the occupants
OF the building had rushed to the windows
eand Jumped TO the street, a distance OF
over fifty feet.
Helen Tolini. one of those to jump, was
almost instantly killed.
Try to QueII the Excitment.
When the nremen and policemen arrived
every EFFORT was made to quiet the terror
lied girls. The nremen rushed up the
stairway and begged the girls to be calm,
telling them there was no danger, but the
sight OF the iremen seemed only to add
TO their terror. While the policemen and
hremen were endeavoring to quiet the girls
on the stairway. ladders were being run
up on the outside OF the building and the
employees who had climbed out onto the
nre escapes and window ledses were
quickly taken to Inc street.
After a few minutes the men were an
hbled TO check the awful crush on the
stairway, and then began the work of
tescuing those who had been trampled ana
crushed between the second and third
hoors. The alarm for ambulances had been
turned In and as quick as the dead ana
Injured could be carried from the buiidIns
they were hurried to hospitals. The num-
ber OF ambulAnces was entirely inadeouate
hnd patrol wagons were brought into use
TO carry the victims away for treatment.
Scene IL Heart-RendinG.
While this was going on the scene about
the structure was heart-rendIng. The
building is located in a section largely in
habited by Hebrews, many OF whom were
caught In the terrible crush. Parents and
relatives of the unfortunate girls were
screaming and rushing about the streets
like mad people aud It was almost i'm
possible TO restrain them from entering the
building
The work OF reseuing the girls from the
windows was necessarily tedious. They
we're so excited that they did not seem
10 understand the pleadings OF the fremen.
At nearly every window we're girls scream
mg and crying for help. Many were so
l1cited that II was with the greatest dim
sulty that they were prevented from jump
ing from the building Notwithstanding
hero was not a sign OF hre and their
Rescue seemed only the work Of a few
moments.
The panic was over in less than half an
hour, but In this brief space thousands
persons had been attracted to the scene
" the Wild screams OF the relatives of the
hetims and the shrieks Of the girls at the
windows.