The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-09-14
SEVEN PERSONS DIE IN FIRE.
PANIC AND DEATH IN EAST SIDE
TENEMENT BLAZE.
Father. Mother and Twin Babes Perish
Also Their Three Boarders--Twelve
Persons Rescued by Human Chain
Fire Not Incendiary, Marshal Says.

Father. Mother and Twin Babes Perish
Also Their Three Board ers-Twelye
Persons Rescued by Human Chain
Fire Not Incendiary. Marshal Says.
Seven persons were killed by suffocation
early yesterday morning in tenement
house fire at 10 First street. The dead in
clude four members OF one family, father,
mother and twin children and three men
who boarded with them. Several other
persons. perhaps score, were injured.
The dead are:
KoSowrTz. ANTON. 80 years old, q cloakmaker,
burned and sufiocated to death on the top floor.
KoEowrTz ANNIE his wife. 20 years old
Their twin sons, weeks old.
KATZTBLAN. STEPHEN. 25 years old. tailor.
TRovsEwITz. ANTON. % years old, tailor.
TuRowITZ. -. tailor.
The tenement Is of unusual shape having
forty feet front and twenty-five feet depth.
There are two rooms on the west side and
three on the east side in each floor. The
stairway is in the centre. About twenty
five families live in tine house.
The fire started in the staircase leading
from the ground floor to the toilet in the
basement. There were some stories at
first OF incer diarism, but nothing was
found to substaltiate such q theory. The
flames had burned for some time and mad
gained considerable Roadway before they
were discovered. Mrs. Louisa Bannow,
who lives across the street, saw the blaze
first and gave the alarm.
On the corner OF First avenue and First
street was crowd of young men, including
kid" Foley and Charles Katz, who live
in the neighborhood. When Foley and
Katz heard Mrs. Bannow's cries they ran
to the burning building and climbed up the
awning fixtures to the second floor. Their
companions ran to Houston and Allen streets
and turned in an alarm.
Foley and Katz first kicked in the windows
of the fats occupied by JAG OBJ Saffa and
Mrs. Scheurman. the nouseKeeper. BY that
time the cracking OF the flames audible
and smoke was fast filling the house. Foley
went into the hall and shouted until he
awoke many Of the tenants of the upper
floors. Then he found two-year-old
and lowered her in the street.
katz, in the mea ntime, got several child
dren of the Saffa family and put them on a
fire escape. From there they were taken
down by men to the street
Policemen Aud, Wynne and Fitzgerald
OF the Fifth street station, and Detective
Cahill went to the second floor in the ad join
ing tenement at os First street and formed
human chain to the corresponding floor
in the burning building. A dozen persons
were thus rescued, including Mrs. Schuer-
man. whose nightdress caught fire while
she was being taken along the cornice.
Katz and Foley, who were helping the
policemen, beat out the flames. The woman
was badly burned, but wouldn't go to a
hospital.
Engine p, at Fifth street and First ave-
nue., was the first TO respond to the alarm.
Firemen P!egender and Croft made their
Il lad
AMI helped in getting out the frightened
tenants.
All this time the fire escapes on every floor
except the top, where the flames we're shoot |
ing out OF the windows, were crowded with |
tenants too frightened to make their way |
down to the sidewalk. The hook and lad !
der company raised their 25 and 5O-foot
ladders and took down many Of the tenants,
relieving the crush on the fire escapes.
When the 5O-foot ladder was raised
Fireman Henning took length .. hose and
entered a window on the top floor There
he found four bodies lying on the floor OF
one OF the rooms occupied by the Konowitz
family. Chief Larkin ordered the men of
Truck 1s to chop holes in the roof, and sent
up another hose. When the fremen had
drowned out the flames and entered the
fiat the bodies of the three boarders were
found in an adjoining room
Konowitzs body was found just outside
the door. leading to the stairway. His
head. and arms were badly burned. His
wife lay near the bed and beside her were
the five-weeks-old twins. They had been
suffocated by the smoke
The fire did about 81 500 damage Capt.
Steve Mcl)ermott of the East Firth street
station said later that he thought the fire
was of incendiary origin. assistant Fire
Ma rshal De Malignon, who made an in
vestigation, differed with the captain.
He said that there were no traces of incen-
iiarism.
Israel Safra who lived in the house, told
4 story OF having found burning broom
in the ground floor hall one day last week.
He put out the blaze and told the house
keeper. Nothing more was heard OF the
matter
The Konowitz family had lived in the
house about year. Last Sunday the twins
we're christened at Polish Roman Catholic
Church in Harlem
ACTS on CIVIL SERVICE PLANT.