Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1905-08-11
SCORES perish IN
COLLAPSE OF Store
OVER A HUNDRED PERSONS
ARE BURIED UNDER WALLS
AT Albany, N. z.
HEARTRENDlNG SCENE
FOLLOWS THE DISASTER
Frantic Mothers and Relatives Seek
Tidings of Dead in Ruins-Many
Girls Among Victims Catastro-
phe Worst in History.

Albany, N. Y, Aug. 9.-Over 100 per-
sons, large majority of them girls,
were buried beneath a smother Of
brick, wood and plaster Tuesday morn
ing when the central portion of the
large department store of the John G.
Meyers company collapsed from roof
to cellar. The wrecked portion in
cludes nearly one-half of the store.
Scores of rescuers toiling among the
ruins soon had brought out rs In
jured. Three of these died after
reaching the hospitals. At that time
lilo were unaccounted for, and it is GER
tain that at least half of these are still
beneath the mound of debris. About
400 persons are on the firms payroll,
but some SO of these are on their va
cations.
Hundreds in Awful Plunge.
Three hundred persons employed in
the large store had just gone to work
Tuesday, when the whole center of
the building collapsed from roof to
cellar. Nearly 100 men, girls and
children were carried down in the
wreck. The first estimate placed the
number of killed and injured at 40.
The catastrophe, which is the worst
of it's kind in the city's history, oc-
Cured shortly before nine o'clock.
The Meyers estate has been making
extensive repairs on its building.
Tuesday morning a gang of Italian
workmen started to remove an iron
pillar that supported the main floor.
Evidently they had failed to brace the
floor properly, for scarcely had they
loosened the post when down came all
three upper floors within radius of so
feet from the fatal pillar. The wreck
crashed through to the cellar, bury
ing the workmen and carrying down
those who happened to be working in
that portion Of the building.
Scene Is Terrible.
The scene which followed the col
lapse is indescribable. Most of those
injured were young men. The coll
lapse came without warning. The
walls and roof of the center OF the
structure fell into the building form
ing mass of debris, under which were
the unfortunate victims. Telephone
communication was sent to the various
hospitals and doctors throughout the
city, and within half an hour rs doc
tors and four ambnlances were on the
scene. The various stores in the
neighborhood were turned into emer-
gency hospitals, and mattresses were
brought from the various department
stores in the neighborhood for the care
of the victims.
Police and Firemen Help.
The work Of digging out the victims
was conducted by the members of the
fire and police departments and all city
laborers. Water rushed into the ruins
from twisted pipes, and it was neces-
sary to cut of the supply in the vicin-
ity. The scenes about the building
were as pitiable as those within. Sew
eral hundred relatives Of employees
were there, and their supplications as
to the welfare Of their loved ones
were heartrending. Those who died
in the hospital are Nellie Burns
Bertha Cunningham and Miss McEvoy
So Far as is known. all the injured are
Albanians. except Mrs William Borst
a shopper, whose home is said to be
IN Window, MINI. The known dead
now number ten. Thirty-one laborers
who were supposed TO have been buried
in the ruins have been accounted for