New-York tribune., 1903-06-14
FIRE SET; FIVE DEAD.
FOUR OF THEM CHILDREN.
Policeman almost Cat off by Tene'
ment House FLAMES.

AS the result of what is believed to have been
an incendiary fire. early yesterday in the four
story tenement house at No. jf1 East One-hun-
dred-and- -thrteenth-st. five persons were burned
and suffocateG to death The dead are:
CTPRIANO. Giuseppe. twenty-four years old
DE CICCO. Alfredo. four months old
DE CICCo. Camille two and hak years old
DE CICCo, Theresa. four years OLD
STAFANO Francisco. eight years old
The fire was discovered by Lilo De Cieco.
the head of the De Cicco household, which occu-
pies part of the third floor of the building
For the last four months the child Theresa had
been i'll with spinal meningitis, and last night
her father was caring for her. The mother and
one of the children were asleep in an inner
room. while Camille and Alfredo were in d third
and rear room De Cicco smelled smoke com
ing through the cracks of the door, and looking
into the hallway saw flames downstairs His
cries aroused the other tenants. His wife and
the child with her reached window, and thither
the father forced to flee after two vain et-
forts to rescue the others.
Patrolman sheehan, of the East One-hundred-
and-fourth-st. station had heard the cries for
help, and. calling PatroIman Pabst and others
to his assistance, hurried the house An
alarm turned in, and Sheehan climbed up
on the cornice Of the first floor and then UP the
fire escape the third floor. He assisted De
Cicco. his wife and the one child down the fire
escape to the second floor. and thence TO the
street
Sheehan then started to climb the ladders to
the top floor where the Stefano family lived.
The flames by this time had reached nearly
every part of the building and were shooting
out through every window. When the police
man reached the third floor he found himself
surrounded by them. He was getting ready TO
jump to the street, when the members of Engine
Company No 81 and Hook and Ladder Com
pany No. II hoisted ladders to an adjoining
house, and. although the buildings are about hFe
feet apart, lifted Sheehan across the opening
Fremen Moth and Sumnerhays climbed the
ladders on the burning building to the top floor
where they found Ciprano, whom they carried
to the street He was taken to Harlem Hos
pital and died there half an hour later.
The firemen then started to reclinb the lad
ders. but found that they were ablaze BY haro
work the flames were controlled, and search
made. On the third floor were found the bodies
of the three De Cicco children, and on the top
was taken out of the building to an ambulance
of the Harlem Hospital Dr. Green was work
ing over her when she died
Cipriano, the police believe, had assisted the
Stafano family down the fire escape ana had
returned for the child, when he was overcome oy
the smoke.
The firemen found resting against d door in
the rear of the hallway on the first floor ieadlng
into vacant storeroom bundle OF rags, IN
the centre of which several rags soaked IN
oil The woodwork in the hallway had also been
oiled
Assistant Fire Marshal De Mallgnon and De
tective Sergeants Funston and Fogarty, OF the
Central Office. were detailed by Inspector NC
Cluskv 10 make investigation
For some time the police and IRE marsnats
have been Investigating supposed 1ncend1ary
fires in the neighborhood of the most recent
blaze About 4 month ago there was tire at
No 3n6 West ne-hundred-and-thtrty-h y-hfth-st,
in which four lives were lost. Last November
three were lost in a fire in First-ave., between
East Observation-Disclosures and East One-hGh-
Gred-and-fourt1 SITS. and two years ago at a nre
at -hundred-and- -thirteenth-st and f1rst-
ave, three persons were killed