The Savannah morning news., 1902-05-17
ARMOUR HAS Big FIRE
LARD REFINERY A TOTAL Loss OF
NEARLY $I,OOO,OOO.
MANY SPECTATORS INJURED.
DRIVER OF FIRE ENGINE DIED
HEROIC DEATH.

Explosion of Lard Tanks Destroyed
ands Gathered to See the Spectac-
uIar BInzing-Sudden Giving Way
of Hog Runway PrecipItate,r
1000 People to the Ground, of
Whom 20 Were Badly Injured,
Five FataIly-Michael MaIIOy Met
Death While Preventing His
Horses From TrampIing Upon
Crowd.
Chicago, May 16-During the prog
ress of a fire which tonight destroyed
the lard refinery of Armour & Co. in
the Union Stock. Yards, twenty-nine
people were injured, five of them in
manner which will probably cause
death in a shore time. The loss of the
company is estimated by it's officers
at between $75OOOO and 100000, with
figure.
There was a number of accidents,
but by far the larger number of those
who were hurt met their injuries by
the falling of a hog-run way, upon
which they were standing to obtain a
better view of the fire.
Fatally injured: Jennie Smith, stem
ographer German-American Provision
Company, both legs broken; Ray Irwin,
II years old, internal injuries and head
lice patrol wagon, both legs broken;
Michael Maloy, driver of fire engine,
internal injuries; an unidentified man,
body crushed, will die.
The lard refinery had just been COM
pleted and was considered by it's own
ers the most complete establishment
of its kind in the United States. 1t
was five stories high and $50 by 500
feet. 1t was filled with new and costly
machinery, and during the day 1000
people worked within it's walls. The
night shift numbered 700, and all of
them were in the building when the
fire broke out. 1t is thought that all
escaped in safety.
The fire originated with an explosion
of three lard tanks on the fifth floor
of the building. The cause of the ex-
plosion is unknown, but the three
tanks, which were filled with boiling
lard, went up with roar almost in
the same second. There were score
of workmen in the immediate vicinity
of the tanks, and a number of them
were burned by the scalding lard. 1t
was not minute after the explosion
before the entire fifth floor was mass
of flames. Within an hour the build
ing was totally destroyed.
Thousands Saw the Blaze.
The fire was one of the most spec
tacular that has been seen in Chicago
in recent years and the display attract
ed an enormous crowd of people, who
swarmed by thousands upon the via
ducts which pass through the yards
at a height of twenty feet from the
ground. Suddenly about 200 feet of a
hog run way extending from the via
Duct north to the plant of Armour
& Co, gave way precipitating fully
1000 persons to the ground. The fire
men instantly stopped their work on
the building and devoted their ener-
gies to saving the people. All were
taken from the wreckage within a few
minutes and placed in an improvised
hospital.
Engine Drivers Sarifice.
Michael Maloy, driver of Engine
Company 40, sustained injuries which
will cause his death, while driving his
engine to the fire. The horses plunged
toward the crowd of people on the side
of the street. Maloy, seeing that some
body would be badly injured unless his
team was checked, sprang from his
seat to the back of one of the horses
and grasping the team by the bits,
turned them against a brick building.
The horses struck the wall with ter
rife force and Maloy was caught be-
tween the wall and one of the horses.
He was fearfully crushed
The loss is fully covered by insur-