The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1905-08-16
POORLY BUILT.
Many People CRUSHED TO Death
by Collapse of a Store.

DISASTER IN ALBANY
Over One Hundred Men. Women and
| Children Buried in the Ruins. Be.
tween Twenty and Thirty
We're Killed, Many Injured
| and Fifty E1tombed.
At Albany, N. T., the middle sec
tion OF the big department. store Of
the John G. Myers company on north
Pearl street, collapsed earlg-on Tues.
day Of last week, carrying down with
it over 100 persons.
| Caught In chsos OF brick, plaster
anS wooden beams, between 20 and 80
men, women and children met death.
Twelve hours fran tic work on the part
Of rescuers disentangled so people. six
Of them dead and many OF the rest
badly injured. Three bodies were in
lsight at a late hour Tuesday night,
but many hours work will be required
to get them out. Anything like
complete list OF the killed and injured
will be unobtainable until the workers
have made their way to the very bot
tom Of the mass Of the wreckage.
With few exceptions those caught in
the ruins were employees, a large ma
joriIy Of them girls.
Ghe catastrophe occurred shortly
after the opening hour when barely
score OF shoppers were in the store. A
clock found in the debris had stopped
at II minutes before 8, showing when
the crash came.
The best account OF the event that
probably caused the ruin Is given by
the head OF the crockery, glass and
drug department., which occupies the
basement.
THE workmen were saving ata
wooden floor beam,' said he, which
runs underneath one Of the central
pillars in the middle Of the store. Ex-
cavation for the cellar was going on
about the base OF this pillar, and I
believe that jarring Of the beam be-
meath it displaced the foundation Of
she pillar. The first thing knew,
two Of the counters near the place
where the men were working began to
sag, and several pieces OF glassware
slid of into the 1oor with crash.
L yelled to my clerks to run for the
front Of the store. The words were
| not out OF my mouth when there came
q creaking aud everything around US
began to fall. The wreck came slow
Iy, however, and ! think everyone in
my department. escaped as well as the
Workmen.
The pillar which drew away sup
ported the ends OF two giant gi1ders,
and when 1t fell, the main support OF
the central part Of the building was
gone. With q noise that could be
heard blocks away and which shook
the adjoining buildings, nearly half
, the great structure, from cellar to
roof, and extending from one side wall
to the other, came grinding down.
Into this cavern fell scores Of en-
oloyes who were working on the four
doors above and lacked The warning
which enabled those in the basement
to escape. Some, however, were ap-
prised Ct the danger by falling plaster
and saved themselves by rushing to
che front OF the store or to the fire
escape In the rear.
Clouds Of dust which shot out Of the
front entrance caused thosa outside to
believe that the store was a6re, anda
ire alarm was Immediately turned in.
When the fire department. arrived
they had plently to do in rescuing
,hss 50 who were pinned under the top
wreckage. They were Joined by scores
Of volunteer rescurers and within an
nour Is or 20 persons were carried out,
more &C them fatally injured.
q : short Jime the c'ty's entire hos
pit;l and ambulance force was on the
scene, aided by half hundred doc
tors from all parts Of the city.
The volunteer rescurers and the
fremen continued the work until ex-
hausted, when their places we're taken
by wrecking force numbering 800
men from the New York Central and
Delaware and Hudson railroads, These
delved In the ruins all night, but
the work of rescue progressed slowly.
/ When darkness came it was estimated
that nearly so persons still remained
in the ruins and that not more than
halt Of these could survive the weight
pressing upon them. Fortunately the
Wreckage did not take fire. Some 100
PERSONS are still unaccounted for, but
so OF these are cash boys, OF whom the
firm has 20 record and the loss Of the
payroll makes it difficult to get any,
thing ike a complete list OF many
others. In all the company has 400
employees, but SO Of these are away on
vacations.
The building which collapsed stands
in the heart OF the shopping district
at Nos. 80 and IL north Pearl street.
1t is owned partly by the company and
partly by the estate OF the late David
Orr. The loss to the company is esti-
! mated at between $500, 600 and $780,
600. The building was a very old one,
but until now considered perfectly
i.n,n3 EyHapeive repajrS were mn.
der way when the catastrophe took
place. After the death OF its foun-
der, John G. Myers, two years ago,
the business was conducted by COM
pany consisting Of George P. Hilton,
| b. King Stufdee, Edward F. Hackett
and Robert NJ. Chalmers. MI. Chal-
mers was taken from the ruins With
slight injuries. About a month ago
the firm was Incorporated as q stock