The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1905-07-04
THREE BURIED I'M WRECK
Foreman Crushed to Death in New
York City Apartment House.
windows Smashed, Treee Uproosed and
Streets Flooded Brick
FeiIs Boy.

New FORK City "A rainstorm which
hurtled across from New Jersey like a
,razy windmill struck Harlem, delug-
ng the streets with d downpour from
is inlSy clouds. turning mid-afternoon
to twilight. ripping Oft ehimueys and
signs and blowing in windows.
Iii this wind and rain storm two five
story apartment houses in course of
construction at One Hundred and
Thirty sixth street and Riverside
Drive collapsed Three workmen were
buried in the ruins. Two of them were
rescued alive after being buried Under
The fallen walls for almost three hours,
while the third, the foreman of the
job. died just as he was reached. The
dead man was Thomas Labor, thirty
eight years old, Of 425 East Seventy
seventh street, and the injured, both
bricklayers, are: Alexis Salyatino, tliir-
ty-ive years old, of $40 Fifth street,
and Yaconell SavOis, forty years old,
of 221 East One Hundred and Twelfth
street Both were removed 70 the j.
Hood Wright Hospital, suffering from
internal injuries.
The groans and shouts of the buried
men were heard for hours before the
men were reached by the squads of
firemen and policemen who strove to
dig them out, ana thnt any one was
taken out alive surprised the crowd of
sescuers and watchers.
When the storm broke there were
about twenty workmen on the scat
fold Of the fourth floor. They saw
the storm sweeping toward them and
FASTENED to rench the street. Lalor
called several of them back, and to-
gether they started putting heavy
beam against the westerly wall,
which lacked the floor beams to sup
port it. They had Just completed the
placing Of this brace when the first
blast OF wind struck the westerly wall
with tornadolike force At the same
time small shanty in front of the
building, in which the donkey engine
was housed, blew down, carrying the
smokestack Of the engine with it.
For an instant the west wall of the
building withstood the force of the
wind, and then began to waver. Some
of the workmen, who had gathered
in the street. shouted q warning to
Labor and his men. but it came too
late. The high wall toppled over,
Swapping the brace as it fell, and
burying the men under great masses
of brick aud mortar This entire
weight landed with crash on the
beams of the third floor, which gave
way, and from there the entire mass
fell to the cellar. increasing in weight
as it fell through each floor. AS the
crumbling of the big structure con-
tinued. the men in the street became
terror-strieken, and fearing that they
were about to be engulfed, ran. calling
loudly for help. The downpour of rain
quickly drowned the clouds of mortar
THAT arose from the ruins, and then il
was seen that half of the westerly
building had fallen to the Second
story ana that the men who had been
on the scaffold were buried under the
mass in the cellar. A hurry call was
sent for ambulances, the police and
the firemen.
The storm did much damage in other
parts of Harlem, and also in the
Bronx. A large plate glass window
in the offices of the Legal Aid Society
in the Hamilton Building, Park avenue
and 125th street, was blown in. and
the papers of the office scattered
broadcast.
The wind got under the roof Of the
home of Tohn Kelly, a bookbinder a.
1887 East 176th street, and lifted il
bodily. Il carried the roof for block
dashing it against a lamppost, which
was demolished. The Kelly house
was soaked.
Thomas Mermody. FIVE years old, Of
21S East Ninety-ninth street, was play
ing ball in front Of his home wher
the storm broke. The -7ind tore sew
eral bricks from the coping of the
house, and one OF them struck the boy
on the head, fracturing his skull.