The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-03-03
STEEL SKELETON OF BIG
HOTEL COLLAPSES AND
KILLS AND MAINS MANY
Fourteen Persons Are Believed to
Be Dead, Several Are Missing
and a Score Hurt.
MRS. STORRS IS MANGLED
While Sitting at Luncheon in a
Hotel, but Her Companion,
Mrs. Savage, Escapes.
MRS. STORRS IS MANGLED

NEW YORK, March 2-Fourteen persons
are believed to have been killed, of whom
the bodies of only seven have been recov-
cred. about a score injured and several are
missing through the collapse to-day of
the steel skeleton of the Hotel Darlington.
a twelve-story apartment house in course
OF construction at 81 West Forty-sixth
street. The steel framework had been
erected as far as the eleventh floor. and the
structure was swarming with iron workers.
masons and laborers when. without an in
stant's warming the upper floor sagged and
collapsed. and the whole structure fell with
a crash that was heard for blocks and shook
all the buildings in the vicinity.
A portion of the steel frame fell upon the
rear OF the Hotel Patterson, on West Forty
seventh street, crushing in the wall of the
dining room and killing Mrs. Ella Lacey
storrs, the wife of Frank Storrs, wealthy
resident of Rye as she sitting at
luncheon with the wife of the Rev. DR..
Minot Savage, who escaped unhurt.
The other bodies so far recovered are those
of Frederick Morrills. foreman of the Roe
bling Constructing Company; Farrell S.
Fagin derrick man, and five unidentified
men, apparently laborers.
| ception, were laborers on the building
Among those missing is Frank ]. Allison,
of the Allison Realty Company. the build
ers of the hotel. who is known to have been
| in the building when il fell.
FLOORS OVERLOADED.
The cause of the disaster generally ac-
cepted is the overlooking of the floors.
| Foreman James Halpin, in charge of the
iron workers, stated that there a
large quantity of cement and other build
! ing material on the fifth floor and that on
the other floor were eighty-three iron beams
| which were to have been used in construct
| ing the remaining floors of the building.
! That criminal carelessness is chargeable to
somebody is shown by the fact that the
building department had placed repeated
| violations" against the building, the last
one being filed to-day at the instance of In
! spector French, because 1.-The side walls
were more than two stories in advance of
the front walls and the floor beams were
not properly boIted and tied" In spite of
this and previous warnings those respon-
| sble for the construction of the building
went ahead regardless of consequences.
The plans for the building were filed by
the firm of Neville Bagge, architects,
and called for the construction of fire.
| proof building twelve stories in height,
with frontage of fifty-fve feet and a
depth of 100, of steel, brick and stone OF a
height unfinished of 40 feet The approxi-
mate building cost, exclusive of plot, was
named at sS5O.OOO
Adjoining the collapsed building on the
west is the four-story brown-stone resi-
| dence of Harold Brown. Some of the huge
/ iron beams struck the side of the house
/ and stove holes in the wall and roof and
| dislodged a part of the brOwn-stone front,
/ which was thrown TO the street. The occu-
| pants escaped uninjured. On the east side
! Is a house occupied by A. Walpole Cragie
home to luncheon few minutes before the
/ crash occurred. Some of the beams struck
and smashing holes in the side walls.
| Mrs. Storrs, whose husband is in Lon
/ don. England, was sitting at luncheon
and she and Meier, the waiter, were in
! stantly buried under the debris of the roof
and walls. Mrs. Savage barely escaped be-
| ing struck, but her skirt was pinned TO the
floor by mass of fallen bricks. Mrs.
! Storrs breathing when extricated, but
! died within a few minutes. The waiter is
| believed to be fatally injured. The other
occupants of the dining-room escaped un-
! hurt.
The Hotel Patterson was shaken to its
! foundations, and the rear fire escapes on
/ several stories were torn from their fasten-
\ ings and all the windows on these floors
were smashed. The occupants of these
apartments hastily quilted the building.
/ The Rev. Minot j. Savage was i'll in his
! apartments in the front of the hotel, at the
/ time of the collapse
! At IL o'clock tonight the contractor in
i charge OF the wreck work said that his
men had discovered seven bodies and that
two We're known TO be pinned under the
wreckage on the east side OF the building.
Patrick Murphy. the engineer of the
! hosting engine. and six workmen were ar
| rested and held as witnesses.