Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-02-06
FATAL EXPLOSION
OF TOW BOAT BOILER
Accidentin the River Near
pitts bur & Yes
terday Morn
ing.

ST. LOUIS Feb. 5-Seven hremen were
killed. six badly injured and q number OF
others sustained minor injuries in the
IRE which last night destroyed the i've
story building az S12 and Si4 Chestnut
street. occupied BY the American Tent &
Awning company. The total financial loss
On the building and contents Is today es-
timated az xss.00. covered b insurance.
List OF the dead:
AUGUST THIERY. first assistant chief.
MICHAEL KEHOE. assistant Foreman
company No. Is
DANIEL ". STEELE. foreman com
WILLIAM DUNDeN. pipe man com
FRANKLTN MCBRIDE. truck man.
CHARLES RRENNING. pipe man.
c0mpany No. q
WILLIAM wEsTENHoFF. engine COM
pany No u
The injured.
Chief swingley. hurt BY falling brick.
william Wann. foreman No. Is hurt
about hips and legs,
Pat Mccarthy. engineer No. 8. struck
By falling brick.
Monroe Moore. electric light Inspector.
.,c-ll -shrough a shaft. bruised and scratch
ed
william IEelg. assistant driver No. .
truck. bruised and hurt internally.
Chief SWfngIey. who was Knocked down
and stunned by flying debris. soon recoV-
cred and bent all his energies 20 rescueing
the men IN the ruins
At II O'Clock today three OF the bodies
had been recovered and strenuous EFFORTS
were being made BY firemen and laborers
10 reach the others piniOned under the
immense, heap OF ruins The injuries re-
cefved b Chief Swingley were found TO
consist merely OF bruises and today he
was hard az work searching the ruins.
Last nleht was the coolest so far re-
corded this winter.
AboHf s o'clock fire was discovered on
the top floor OF the building. Several IRE
companies responded to the alarm and
soon had the flames practically under con-
troll.
- Suddenly. without warning the front
wall feIl forward and the entire building
collapsed. Spectators, policemen and nre-
men on the street saw the wall totter
and escaped injury. but the iremen IN
the building were buried beneath the
ruins Chief Swingley escaped instant
death by jumping beneath a IRE truck
Ffremen and volunteers Immediately
sprang TO the rescue OF the imprisoned
firemen- Several were taken out within
a few minutes. placed in amoulanees and
hurried away for medical assistance
The fremen frantically tore away the
burning timbers. the smoke and heat al
-Ea0Ft overcoming them.
Finally. they ceased. and ii was not
until 80 O'Clock that the first body, that
% William Dundon. was recovered He
died ON the way 10 the hospital
Two hours later the bodies OF Daniel "
Steele and Michael KehOe were taken out
AT 10 o'clock this morning the three
missing bodies were still in the ruins.
All the electric circuits in the vicinity
were broken and darkness handicapped
the resCuers in their work. IL was only
after a roll call that Il was known how
many iremen were missing.
Early today Mayor Wells appeared upon
the scene and set every laborer prOcurable
20 work on the debris
The manner in which the fire originated
S not known. Hermann Ruppelt shared
the second floor with the American Tent
and Awning company. with his printing
once.
A restaurant conducted by Jacob Blume-
berg was on the first floor.
The loss TO all business interests in the
building r. total
This afternoon Chief Swingiey said that
after careful recount. he finds that an
other man Is missing. The seventh man..
who Is supposed 10 be dead In the ruins.
r Willard Westenhoff. Of engine company
No. n
A fund for the relief OF the relatives Of
the victims started by The Post-Dispatch
now amounts 20 nearly SEQ. OF this
amount the Merchants Exchange contrib
uted S31o0