The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1905-03-02
4 KILLED, 50 INJURED
Church Floor Collapsed Carrying
Down Over a Hundred People.
VICTIMS CRUSHED IN wREcKAoE

Remainder OF Funeral Congregation,
Finding Themselves Cut OF From
Door, Fought Madly to Reach the
Windows.
New York, Feb. %. - Eleven per
IONS were killed and upwards OF 50
injured. some probably fatally by the
collapse OF the flooring OF the Fleet
Street African Methodist Episcopal
Church. in Brooklyn. " those killed.
eight were women. two men and one
child.
The building was an ancient, ram
shackle frame structure. erected so
years ago, in the heart Of the colored
section of Brooklyn in Fleet street
near Myrtle avenue.
ArrangemenH had been made to
hold funeral services over Sydney
Painter. one OF the oldest members OF
the church, and the auditorium, which
IL on the second loOr OF the building.
the ground floor being used by the
Sunday school, was crowded with an
audience OF upwards Of 300 persons,
OF whom the majority were women.
The congregation was waiting in 81
lence for the arrival OF the body. and
Pastor Jacobs was standing at the
altar awaiting the summons TO meet
the funeral procession at the door.
when sharp cracking OF timbcrs was
heard. and in an instant the half OF
the auditorium nearest the door col
iapsed carrying down more than 100
persons. who We're crushed in the
wreckage OF the flooring and pews. A
great volume, OF dust for a few mo-
ments hid from view the victims. The
remainder Of the audience. finding
themselves cut on from the door and
expecting every instant that the rest
OF the flooring would collapse under
them. fought madly to reach the win
dows. and in some instances leaped
from them and sustained serious in
juries.
On the arrival OF the police and fire
men the work OF rescue began. Those
remaining uninjured on the portion OF
the floor remaining intact were taken
from the windows by ladders Those
lying in the mass Of wreCkage on the
lower floor could only be- got al after
the hremcn had hewed their way to
them with axes. Out OF the wreck 10
bodies were recovered and taken % a
station house and about 80 were re-
moved to the Brooklyn hospital, where
three women died soon after being adj
mitted All the ambulances in Brook
Ign were called out, and about a score
OF those hurt were able to go home
after their injuries had been at
tended TO-
Ileartrending scenes were witnessed
in the station house, which was
thronged with relatives and friends
who came to identify the dead.
Those killed were. Bertha Green,
Teresa Ellis. Samuel Chisholm. Anna
Bean. Anna Sullivan, Louisa Smith
Mary Scott. two unidentified women
one unidentified child and one uniden-
tilted man
The cause OF the collapse was the
decayed condition OF the beams and
supports OF the flooring.
Sidney /. Painter. at whose funeral
the congregation had gathered was
the organist of the church. About 1870
seats in the front of the church had
been reserved for the mOurners who
were to accompany the body. This led
to the massing OF the congregation in
one place and n consequent concentra-
ton OF weight on the rotten floor
beams. which is believed to have been
the immediate cause of the collapse
Coroner Flaherty said that the
church was condemned as unsafe sew
eral years ago, and that he intended
to prosecute a thorough inquiry to fix
the responsibility for the disaster.
According to Pastor Jacobs. money
had been raised for a new church, the
erection OF which was soon to have
been begun