The sun., 1903-08-12
PARIS SUBWAY A DEATH TRAP
FIRE THERE TAXES 81 VICTIMS
AND SHOWS INTERSECTIONS.
Tunnel Not Properly Ventilated. and Deadly
Fumes overcome Fleeing Passengers
Cars Built Of Pitch Pine Burn Fiercely
Survivors Tell OF struggles for Life
Women and Children Among the Dead
Special Cable Despatch to THE SUN,

Specta, Cable Despatch to TEE SUN,
PARIS, Aug. 11.-Eighty-four bodies have
been recovered from the tunnel of the
Metropolitan Electric Railway. and 1t 10
believed that few, IL any, more lives were
lost by the burning Of trains last night
Though the fire started at $50 O'Clock
in the evening. it was midnight before tho
aremen were able to approach near enough
to turn the hose on the mass OF fame In
the tunnel It was o'clock this morning
before anything could be ascertained As
to the number Of victims.
VICTIMS CAUGHT IN DEATH TRAP.
The tunnel where the first train caught
fire was imperfectly ventilated, and soon
became almost as hot as an oven The
doors Of all the stations in the Belleville
section, in which the disaster occurred,
close automatically. The ventilating open
ings are few and far between and work
badly.
The extent Of the disaster was due to tho
fact that the cars were built Of pitch pine.
which, upon catching fire, burned like tin
der. The blaze was communicated to tho
other trains and finally to the sleepers
which burned all night.
The sleepers were prepared with oreosots
to prevent their dscaying, and this added
choking quality to the smoke that 1t would
not have possessed otherwise. The fumes
were so overpowering that it was impos-
sible to work air pumps at the ventllatin8
orit1ces or the openings at the stations.
This state Of things continued until morning.
NJ Lepine, project Of police, says that
when the line was opened he wanted to have
ventilation openings every 800 yards, but
the engineers said they saw no necessity
for so many orfices.
HOW THE DISASTER OCCURRED.
The station master at Rue des Couronnes
gives the following version of the disaster
AT 7:35 o'clock last night train COM
ing from Dauphine had to make halt at
the Barbes station. Something had gone
wrong with the motor and the train could
not be started, so the passengers got down.
.very shortly after another train going in
the same direction arrived at the Barbes
station. The passengers in this train also
got out, and 1t started to push the disabled
| train to the terminus.
sThese two empty trains flew past the
! stations between Barbes and Bellevilie.
| The next station is Couronnes, but before
| they got SO far flames had burst through
! the floor of the disabled train and were
| leaping up toward the doors and windows
| Of the cars, in which were ten terrified
| railway employees.
AS the burning carriages passed me
I shouted to the driver of the second train
to stop, telling him that he did not have
| time 10 reach the terminus. He declared
that he had. and the two flaming trains
disappeared In the tunnel In the direction
| Of the Menilmontant station.
They were nearing that station when
suddenly long, blush flame shot up be-
tween the first and second trains and Q
loud explosion was heard. All the etghs
carriages were now In flames and tho drivers
and conductors had only time to fes. Tbs
two trains we're soon burning furiously.
"The flames ran along the walls and
ceiling OF the tunnel and melted the elsotrio
light wires, leaving the tunnel In darkness
except for the light given by the burning
cars.
~The electric current was then switched
of, but another train full Of working man
and women was at that moment between
BelIeyille and CoTonnes, and when the
current was stopped this train came 70 q
standstill at the entrance Of the Couronnes
station, about 800 yards from the blAdnx
trains.
"An indescribable panic ensued. Tho
passengers were In complete darkness, save
for the light from the burning carriages.
Men and women fought like beasts for air
and liberty
The fremen and police took ptsps
to restore order and save the Nvws
Of tho many passengers, but svery-
thing combined to mako the task
one Of extraordinary difficulty, and u was
midnight before they could even hsgin
10 fight the flames BY 8 o'clock tho hiAss
had been extinguished, except at one point;
but the heat remained intense, the thar
mometer registering 1853 degrees Fahrsnheit-
RECOVERY OF THE BODIES.
The smoke was 30 dense that Il was
nlIYlObU IupbuoJi dDA0s duA Av WWn W us0Oh
before the firemen reached the MenImon-
tant station. They soon brought out ssven
mutilated and blackened bodies. Ths re-
mains OF the victims were carried In lttars
to an omnibus station and police station
close at hand.
The Boulevard Bellevills was filed with
an awestruck crowd and heads were un-
covered as the bodies were carried past.
OF the first 6fty-six bodies recovered
forty-four were those Of men, ten OF women
and two OF children, all belonging 10 the
working class. All the victims appeared
to have died of asphyxiation. The ma
jority Of the bodies had the arms raised,
the fists clinched, and the legs twisted,
and some Of them were bent double. Al
most all had wounds on the face and hands.
Many Of the victims held handkerchiefs
In their smoke begrimed hands.
Among the last of the bodies to be recov-
cred were those OF woman and two chill
dren. The woman was holding the children
by the hands.
Owing to the small dimensions OF the
morgle forty-rour of the bodies wers
taken to police headquarters, tho large
guard room of which was hung with black
draperies. Some of the bodies were almost
unacceptable, AS soon as any Of them was
identified it was placed in a coffin.
60 k1.