New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-03-26
WATERLACKING FOR FIRES
Chief Crokcr Declares Salt Supply
You'd Stop Trouble.

a.. Do, @,r,r alarm fire IN West FourteeEth-st
,-e---77v morning the Fire Department was again
zr-fr-.e-s larlpered b- an alarming scarcity on
y-+er The fire quilted the building al Nos az ana
s4s West Fiftoeurh-st- and Nos so AID 4As "f7'
1-,.,--eantl,-s- aoclried by ~. II. Crane & CO.,
manufacture q gas stoves and other appliances.
The Ere started in the Flfteenth-st end OF 'He
building and swept through 10 Fonr'eenln. 81
causing damage estimated By CHIEF croker al -
rb-ea alarms were sent ln ID quick SUGGESTION
and were DON followed hy fourth. chief croker
r. soon as ne arrived stationed water tower op-
posite the Fifteeuth-sL end or the burning buiu-
ing but the extremely low pressure IN the mains
,,~,a.,fe5 q stream strong enough TO be Of use 10
nc thrown from the big nozzle. Under normal con
sftiors three engines give the stream IN She tower
pressure OF eighty pounds 10 the square men,
which would throw stream about 10 feet
So feeble was the pressure yesterday morning
that there was only pressure or thirty pounds I'D
the towers Iv the six engines Jhat were attached
10 the tower To make the danger greater tla
numerous engines called out by the four alarms
had 20 10 scattered over a vide area. making
necessary the laying Of long lines OF hose and me
irlcre7se OF pressure IN each. This caused three
lines 10 burst. puttiug Them out or commission
The second water tower. In Fourteenth-st- Lao
the same trouble with the low pressure az the
other and was % little use, although double the
usual number Of engines were used 10 force wafer
in g.
CHEZ Croker said last might that never before
IN h,s experience AS fireman mad he iisd SO much
diTcllty with the lack Of water M hres "s since
January :. At every fire the pressure mas been
alarminCly low. particularly SD a, the IRE IN
West Tweuty-i5fth-st. a week ago last Monday.
and the fire near the West Fifty-nnth-sL gas
tanks some time before that.
The cause Of tho low pressure. IN M riinu.' he
said last might, .lies in che negligence a. employees
OF the Water Departm mi. ! believe rEet they
have made repairs % the mains yar0as Iorti'rs
Of the city and haze then gone away. leaving the
gates closed. thus shutting OF a co1sla'-Aoie l'r-
tion o. the supply. We have always has n SUI
fcient amount OF water up 10 recently. ! nave re
ported the failure OF jne wat-r supply -o '"ir-
missioner Hayes ia each instance.
The introduction OF the salt water emergency
system would entirely remove this danger and give
necessary that W. should have a supplementary
system OF TINS sort since lte SLole.i 'i "a -
morning. even when the reservoirs are fun as they
fail AS. but cannot go hunting around ah over
couple onto the first hydraut We lind and get TO
At the Office Of the Commissioner Of Water sup
ply Gas and ElestTic'y DeRuEs Soil Mss i M;
had ordered az INVESTIGATION INTO me cause ot IN.
failure Do pressure. altnouEh no formal coInplaiht
er Oakley ard the engiueeriug bureau OF the de
parJmeut ascribed the conditions 10 the placing *
too many engines 10 pump from q single main. ana
~ l,-ia,ei IN raCi-r ne engines orl different
no ronai-s had been made ia the vicinity OF the
l'ourteeI IRE. and that FAR The depart
meuf was aware present. 10 gates mad leen
closed iu the mains
Both the Deputy Commissioner and the engineer
ing department said that the introduction OF salt
water emergency system would remedy any trou-
bic arising from low pressar ia the CrotOn mains
The Deputy Commission said. further. that he
could uot understand why there should have been
any trouble az the F0uTt-eurn-Sr IRE He said that
IN Fourteenth and Fifteenth SITS. there were two
i-inch mains fed by and - inch mains il Niutl-
ave-. and by and J. inch mains IN Amsterdam
ave
There were plenty Of available hydrauts he said.
directly tapping these big mains. and there would
have been no trouble 81 six engines had not been
drawing water from the S-fnch mains IN the two
cross streets. pumping them dry almost immedl-
sfelv