Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-09-05
ESCAPE CUT OFF
Fouteen Lives Lost in a
New York Fire.
Buildings Exits Blocked by Re-
pairs Now in Progress.
Several Daring Rescues by Firemen-
Loss Not Heavy.

New York. Sept. 4.-Fourteen per-
I sons We're killed and nearly 4 score
w"r" injured in fire in a tive-stnrE
double tenement on Attorney street.
at an e;tyly hour this morning. 1t WAS
one of the worst fires in tie loss of
human hV,s that has occurred on the
East side iii several Years. although
| tn" property loss WAS slight.
The dead include four women one
man and nine children. ranging in age
from ) months to y years. Many OF
the injured were taken to hospitals
and ii is thought that several of these.
VIII die. Among the injured were five
iilcncn who We're on the fourth noor
balcony when it fell with them
The small number Of mrlI among the
killed and injured was due to the fact
that most of the men vino lived in the
building, following the Attorney street
| custom i'll not weather. were. asleep nn
the roof, while but few of the women
and children were there. Thos,. on the
| roof We're unable 10 escape by descend
lnE through the burning building and
nEIGc their way to safety over uri.h-
boring roots. Meanwhile the members
| "l their families who had remained in
| their rooms found escape shut off and
| i"till" rriSlrd throughout the building.
Tic lire occurred about ) O'Clock in
the morning and there was considers
able delay i'll sending i'll an alarm.
When Tn" fircmcn reached the scene.
some oi H." tenants were jumpin.: from
| the Wil,inWS and from the ends of th,.
| fire cScIptS that reached ONLY to the
| second floor. others were crol!chinw in
| Tn, snoi<" IN the small rooms and mar
row halls. Several anbul;lnc,s were.
called and the ambulance sur..cnoS
| were Kept busy caring for The injured.
| y number OF daring rcscurs we're m,,d,.
by lir"iA'n and police and the cundi-
| tons under which they worked vert.
| unusual ana difficult
| The loss of life was due chiefly to the
fact that alterations We're being made,
i'll the tenement building The base
mcnt ana TIL" first floor. the latter about
| six feet above the sidewalk level, had
both been cut through, the front and
rear walls having been removed and the
| upper floors being supported by steel
| bctms that Wurklncn We're placing.
The only exit from the upper floors
was by way of Il small step ladder iii
Il part Of the building that was UNI
| lighted. Twelve families lived in the
! house and it is said that the tearing
| away Of the lower floor was gone SO
quickly that certain of the tenants who
| wished to move from the building were
unable to get their furniture out and
| thus were compelled to remain.
| The work of alteration had nccessi-
tatcd the removal of the fire escape
| from the first and second noors When
| the fire occurred the panic-stricken
tenants found fire escapes that led to
| the second floor and no further.
The work of the fiIenen was greatly
| numbered also by the condition of the
building, but over 20 persons were rcs-
cued by them from the fourth and fifth
floors. Many persons received injuries
by jumping to the sidewalk and to the
CUTOFF fire escapes.
The fire is supposed to have been
caused by the explosion of a lamp that
had been left tn light the hall on the
second lloor and the sleeping tenants
were not aroused until the hallway was
labiaZc and escape that way had been
Icut of. The fire was soon eXtinguis}ed
land then the scare h for the dead began
Most Of the dead We're found on the two
upper floors.
! Will" the search of the building was
going on, four flrcmen We're ut work on
la fourth f,oor balcony when the bal
cony fen with them. Another fireman
on the balcony On the floor below was
also carried down and was probably ia
tally injured. The other four were also
hurt, but will recover.