The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1905-03-20
RUINS CATCH AFIRE,
ADDING TO THE HORROR
The Cries and ShriekS Of the
Victims Under the Burning
Ruins We're Terrible
Flames Spread Rapidly to
Adjoining Property CauS-
ing S25O,OOO Loss.

Broclton, Mass, March 20.-The ex
pIosion 81 boiler IN the r. b. Grover
shoe company's factory, makers Of the
Emerson shoe, caused the death Of 90
people and the serious injury to many
others this morning, while the loss of
property Is estimated to be quarter Of .
million. The catastrophe is the most seri-
Gus in the history Of this city, the
seenesresultiug being such as to turn
the hearts Of the most tried physicians,
police and fremen.
The following are the places burned;
Shoe factory Of r. B. Grover & Co.
Dohaborg block.
Tavern building.
John Taft's house; August Burgess
house; Mrs. Halma Hulmquist's house;
c. o. Peterson's house, Engineer Rock
wells cottage; Mrs. Hoods house was
damaged BY the boiler and partially
burned. The buildings were Of wood.
The estimates Of the dead in the ruins
vary from fifty to rs. The fire was
under control at half past teu o'clock,
but the searching over Of the ruins was
begun only shortly before non. Eighteen
bodies have been taken out. The known
dead are.
Albin Dahaborg, Mrs. Elijah II. Kel-
ley, Linus Swanson, Mrs. John Landers.
The loss is estimated at 100000.
There we're about four hundred peo-
pie at work in the factory at the time
Immediately after the explosion, which
occurred at 7so o'clock, the three floors
above the boiler collapsed. The entire
west half Of the factory was razed tc
the ground by the shock. Flames al
once broke out And in the ruins were
from two to three hundred OF the 4OC
people at work in the building. In Q
few minutes the ruins were mass o.
flames. The fourth floor with the fin
ishiug room girls fell to the GROUND
also
Work Of Rescue was Stopped.
The work of rescue was begun BY thl
police and firemen, and the first tw,
bodies recovered were 50 horribly burne,
that they could not be identified. Th'
front Of the factory caught fire, driv
ing out the rescuers from that part 0
the building. So rapidly did the flame
spread that at nine o'clock the entir
four story structure was a mass Of blaz
ING ruins, with fallen walls. Then tn
fire was communicated to the adjoining
buildings. The Dahlborg block was th
first to catch fire, then the old Dral1
Tavern, near the factory. AS man,
firemen as could be spared from tn
work of rescue fought the flames vail
antlv. but seemed powerless to chec
the advance. In almost no time, seve
buildings, mostly houses on Dento
street. were ablaze.
The cries and shrieks Of those pinne
under the fallen ruins and held dow
bv beams and timbers were heartrend
ing. Such shrieks and such horrc
we're never known in Brockton before
The cries were Hthth AOk hhAA Hilp
Then the flames and smoke enwrappe
the victims and the voices were drown
ed. Many Of those who were bein
roasted alive we're seen by the rescuei
who we're unable to get at them; an
the victims perished before their eye
The rescuers we're compelled to abando
them to their fate.
The injured were taken to the neigl
boring houses and were cared for b
the physicians, every doctor in the cit
being called to the work One Of II
doctors who came away from the seer
Of the accident and went to the ho