The sun., 1905-12-13
AWFUL JAM ON FIRE ESCAPES
125 MEN AND GIRLS RUSH FROM
BURNING BUILDING.
Took Minutes for All to Reach the street
Six Girls Open Looked Scuttie With
Iron BAR and Escape Over RoOf-Fac-
tories Gutted-Italians In Panic.

More than two hundred persons. men.
| girls and boys employees in the numerous
shops in the six story factory building at
40 to 81 Elizabeth street, we're thrown into
panic by cries Of fire about o'clock last
evening. Fire had started on the second
floor in the shop Of 8. Peluso & Sons, manu-
faoturers of oorks, and the smoke, ascend
ing through the shafts, stairways and belt
holes, soon spread through the entire build
ing.
When the rush to get out began many
fled to the stairs. down which they reached
the street without difficulty Mike Odello
made three trips with his elevator, and in
that way got down about fifty persons,
but about 1875 persons, Of whom some
seventy-tive were girls. made for the fire
escapes on the front of the building.
They clambered out of windows on the
three upper floors until the fire escape gal
leries were filed with shouting and scream
ing men and women. Patrolmen McHale
and Kaufman ran into the building and let
down the swinging ladder from the first
floor balcony.
In the meantime the tiremen had arrived
and the crews of Trucks q and put up lad
ders and began taking people from the
upper balconies TO relieve the crush Chief
NTnRer tSIHIdIe el tIluI IL IoOK elPnt minutes
to clear the fire escapes Of people.
Six girls who worked in tailor shop on
the fourth floor, and who were told there
was no hurry about getting out, fingered
to get their wraps and then ran into the
hall; Ihe smoke pouring up from below
made them fear to venture down, 80 they
fled to the roof. When they got there they
found the scuttle fastened, Angelina iara,
II years old OF Lao Mott street. one of the
number darted into a shop and grabbed an
iron bar, with which she ran back. With
this the girls succeeded in breaking loose
the scutte fasteninGs. Half sutiocated. .
they scremhlod out on the roof and gained
tho street through an adjoining building
Within half an hour the fire spread
throughout the building. The flames,
bursting through the roof and spurtinE from
windows front and rear made fine illu-
mination that was seen all over the lower
part of town and attracted so great a crowd
that the reserves of six precincts had to be
called to keep il in control,
The burned building was about loo feet
deep and its rear wall was within five feet
Of the walls of rear tcuements at 100, lO2
aud lOi Mott street, Front and rear
houses there were filled with Italians who
became frenzed at sight of the flames. Al
first they raced to the street. Then they
returned to their homes for their possess
sions. The narrow Railways were filled
with struggling, screaming people when
Roundsman Hackett and the reserves of the
Eldridge street station arrived. The police
were compelled to use force in some IN
stances to get the people into the street.
The burned building was in a nest Of
buildings mostly occuI led by furniture
manufa cturer-. and Chief Croker didn't
breathe easy until the fire was under con
troll. The fremen succeeded in confning
the fire to the building whore il started
The loss was estimated al 100000. Other
occupants of the burned building We're
Persly & Summergrade, machnists; the
National Laundry, A. Michaeleon, novelties;
Epstein Il Marks, electric fixtures, and
several taiors' shops