New-York tribune., 1905-11-04
FIREMEN' HARD PRESSED.
THREE BUILDINGS BURN.
WOmGn Killed in Tenement House.
Explosion in Puck" Offices.

Most of the downtown fremen put in the hard
est nights work they have done for several
weeks last night when three big fires. one OF
them resulting fatally. taxed their ability to the
utmost The first fire. which resulted in the
death of one woman and peinful, if rot serious.
injuries TO many persons broke out about 4
o'clock III the five story double tenement house
at No ii LudIow-st- Starting in the first floor,
The fire swept Up the stairways and halls to the
roof in a few seconds driving the tenants to the
fire escapes. The two upper floors of the build
ing were entirely destroyed. driving eight fam
lilies, who lost everything they possessed, into
the street.
The dead woman, Mrs. SOnnenberg, was
found in a rear apartment on the fourth floor
close TO window to which she had tried to
drag herself She mad taken the room where she
found only three days ago. and in
the building knew anything about her.
The fire started in the fiat of Mrs Mollie
Rheinhart in the rear of the first floor. She was
frying fish, and in her absence from the room
the fat caught fire and flowed onto the
floor Mrs. Rhenhart rushed to the top floor
screaming and alarming the other tenants. She
was rescued by fireman.
Only the work of Joseph P. Ryan, elevator
in the Puck Building. at Elm and East
Houston SITS, little later saved the lives of
most of the girls the seventh floor of the
building. There more than a hundred girls
on that floor when they ere thrown into wild
panic following an explosion in a storeroom.
The girls scrambled through the windows onto
the fire escapes and climbed down TO the second
floor where they unable to lower the heavy
iron ladder dropping to the street.
Most of them rushed back to some higher
floor Ryan kept the elevator running and did
not stop until he had got every girl who re-
nained in the building to the first floor. There
i-nt
eneG screams from the girls the fire escapes.
Sergeant Henry, who had heard the explosion in
Police Headquarters ran to the Puck Building
and smashed in the door releasing the girls.
He then went to the second floor and released
the ladder, which allowed the other girls TO
reach the street
The only person seriously injured Paul
GiIhauser an ink grinder living at No. 21S6
Sth-ave who is now In Gouverneur Hospital,
where he remained unconscious several hours
from bad burns about the head and body.
One employe, Mary Toomey living in Mott
St. fell on the sidewalk after being taken from
the fire escape and broke her right knee cap.
What caused the first explosion is not known
but keg after keg of benzne in the storeroom
exploded in quick succession after the first ex-
pIosion which was heard for blocks. 1t took
the fremen hours to put out the fire, In
which time about $50 600 damage done.
At almost the hour four alarms were
turned in in quick succession for one of the
most spectacular fires seen in this city for many
weeks This fire was in five story brick
building occupied a paper box factory by
Frederick Neff at King and Greenwich sts The
building which was owned by the Trinity Cor
poration, was completely destroyed.
When the fire started two hundred girls and
about fifty men were at work getting ready
to leave the building So quickly did the flames
spread that less than fifty of the women had
time to go down the stairs. The rest got out
by the fire escapes or were carried down by the
firemen. Many of them tainted and were at
tended by an ambulance surgeon.
The fire started from some unknown cause in
the engine room. Several firemen had a narrow
ESCAPE forcing their way through the flames
while their comrades covered them with streams
from two pipes An hour after the fire was
started it was apparently under control, but
without warning it blazed up again. and 1t was
not for another hour that the f1remen rega1ned
their lost ground The loss will amount to about