The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-09-28
DAMAGE TO THE SHOPS.
Details of the Santa Fe Fire at
ALBUQUERQUE.

More details of the disastrous fire iii
the Albuquerque shops of the Santa Fe
are given in the Albuquerque Democrat
of Monday. 1t saws:
The Santa F'e shops were severely dam
aged by fire which broke out in the
roof of the engine house shortly after Z
o'clock last night. and which burned
with increasing fury for upwards OF an
hour before it was checked by the COM
bined efforts of the Albuquerque fire de-
partment and the Santa Fe fire COM
pany, struggling against all manner of
difficulties and only winning after one
of the hardest and bravest fights which
have been seen against fire In Albu-
Quercue. AS IT is. the east end or the
old machine shops is a ruin, and the
costly electric power plant installed less
than a year ago at cost OF nearly
SaS. 900 is badly damaged.
The exact amount of the damage or
any correct estimate of ii could not BE-
reached last night for up to O'Clock
this morning the Santa Fe fire depart
ment was pouring water into the engine
room and playing streams over the roofs
+ of the machine shops to guard against
further outbres k. while the absence of
light. caused by the breaking down OF
the power plant. made it impossible to
get any adequate idea of the extent OF
the loss. None of the local officers careu
last night to express any opinion as 10
the extent of the damage. 1t is safe to
say. however. that considering the ma
Ju1e OF the DldZc ana Inc ul11lCulllSS tn
countered in fighting it. the shops have
escaped with comparatively light dam
age.
AS one evidence of this it was stated
last night by one of the officials at the
shops that fully half of the machine
shops would be in operation by Wednes-
day morning at the latest. To accom-
plish this the old 30-horse power PEBBLES
engine, which was recently replaced by
the new electric engines. will be installed
in the machine shops and the works
started uD in the west end. so that
round house work and engine repairing
of a lighter nature can go on undls-
turbed.
The damage is confined to the east
end of the old buildings of the machine
shops and TO the engine room.
That part of the machine shops which
was damaged is known as the old shops
ed here by the Santa Fe. 1t contains d
large quantity of valuable machinery
which was moved in when the new and
more extensive engine shops were built
last year. The blaze did not reach the
new buildings at any time, and only
once or twice were they in immediate
danger and that at the early stage of
the fire when it looked as if the who're
plant would go.
The damage to the machine shops,
cannot be estimated and it is doubtful
if it can be today. for the value of the
machines is uncertain and the extent OF
damage to the walls of the building
cannot be estimated until their strength
is tried.
The worst damage is to the engine
rooms and electric plant. Here two OF
the big motors are burned out, and the
electric engines are water soaked II
will take them at least ten days to dry
out and then it can be determined
whether or not they are seriously dam
aged One of the engineers, after a
hasty examination last night. said that
he believed the damage to these engines
would be confined to the defacing of the
plant.