The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-23
IN GRASP OF FLAMES
THIRD FLOOR OF WHITFIELD
BUILDING BURNED OUT.
PERILoUS PLIGHT OF FIREMEN
BLINDED ny SMOKE THEY WE'RE
RESCUED WITH DIFFICULTY.

Heat of Flames and SunOcaftnG
smoke Drove Them to Windows
Delay in Getting Ladders to the
Men ImperiIIed Their Lives-Ftrs
started in RichmOnd's business
College on Top Floor and With
Exception of Private ONCE, Every
thing Was Observation-Disclosures
sons Co. and Rhodes a HRVertS
Company Heavy LOsers-COnfeder-
ate Veterans Association and h
j. Mcdaniel Also Suffered-MOst Oi
the Damage Done by Water-ori-
gin of the Fire IA Mystery.
Blinded by smoke, their backs Bills
tered by the heat, and almost suffocat-
ing, eight members of the Savannah
Fire Department and Louis Garfunkel
were for several minutes in perilous
position on the third floor of the Whit
field building yesterday afternoon. Fire
was raging on - top floor. occupied
by Richmond's Business College, and
the nine men were rescued from the
WINDOWS on the President street side
of the building.
The building is on Whitaker street
and extends from State to President.
The top floor was occupied and used
by C. S. Richmond as a business col
lege. 1t was badly Quilted and the
contents, with the exception of Mr..
Richmond's office, were totally de-
stroyed The second floor on the
State street side was occupied by the
Confederate Veterans Association and
r. ] Mcdaniel, typewriters and sup
plies.
The basement, first and second floors
on the President street side of the
building were occupied by Macarthur &
Sons Company as a music house, and
a stock valued at about $4,000 was
carried. The basement and first floor
on the State street side of the building
was occupied by the Rhodes & Haverty
Furniture Company of Atlanta, and a
large stock Of furniture was carried.
The occupants of the first two floors
suffered considerable loss from water.
Macarthur I& Sons Co. was by far the
greatest sufferer, however, from wa
ter.
Fires Origin n Mystery.
The fire began on the northeast side
of the building, but in just what spot
could not be determined. Its origin
is a mystery and it could not be de-
termined whether the flames first made
their appearance in the front of the
building or in a room in the rear where
a considerable quantity of stationary,
advertising matter and other literature
was stored. Mr.. Richmond and the
firemen are inclined to the opinion that
the fire started in the room used for
storing stationary. A gas jet may
have been left burning in the store
room and started the fire, or ii may
have been started they said by defective
wiring.
Others who arrived on the scene
early are certain that the fire started
in the northeast corner of the build
ing and conditions after the flames
had been extinguished stronghold this
opinion. Seemingly the fire started
could be offered that would
support such theory. There
had been no lightning before
the discovery of the flames
and Mr.. Richmond did not think that
the fire was the result of an incen-
diary.
Called by Telephone Alarm.
Smoke was first seen issuing from
the windows at the northeast corner
of the building and a telephone mes
sage to the Central Fire Station, on
Oglethorpe avenue, was answered by
the chemical engine. AS the apparatus
turned the postoff1ce corner, at Bull
and President streets the firemen saw
large volumes of smoke issuing from
the four corners of the building and
shouted back for some one to sound
an alarm.
Box IS. at Bull and York streets,
was opened and was sounded by
Postmaster Harry Blum. About the
same time somebody on Barnard street
sounded box 49, at the Odd Fellows
Hall, and that alarm was answered by
the downtown apparatus. In the
meantime, the firemen on the chemi-
cal engine had worked their way up
to the third floor with a line from
the chemical. A blaze was discovered
near the head of the stairs and was
promptly extinguished.
Blinded by Smoke.
BY this time several lines of hose
had been carried up the stairs and
there were in the neighborhood of q
dozen men on the floor. A dense ano
suffocating smoke blinded the firemer
and made it almost impossible for then
to breathe. They could not see hall
a foot in front of them and there wai
no trace of fire in any direction, al.
though heavy clouds of smoke were
rolling to the windows and out into the
street. To those in the street it 1p
peared that the entire top floor wal
burning and that the firemen were do
ing nothing to stay the flames. Thu
contrary was the fact.
The only fire that could be founC
had been extinguished, and as thu
smoke grew denser the firemen grope(
their way through the rooms trying t
discover the point from which it wa
issuing. The heavy smoke forced then
back from the northern wing of tn
building and towards the Presiden
street wing. Fire Chief Mcguire ant
two newspaper men made their escap
from the floor by following a line o
hose down the steps. Before the.
reached the street the flames burst on
of the windows on the northwest cor
ner of the building.
The eight firemen and Mr.. Garfunke
were unable to get to the steps be
fore the flames made their appearance
and were forced to the President stree
windows by the heat and smoke.
The fire was sweeping across the hal
and getting dangerously close to tn
men who had been trapped. They hell