The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-10-06
BACK DRAUGHT TRAPS FIREMEN
COMRADES PLUNGE INTO BLAZ-
ING CELLAR To SAVE THEN.
tn rec Dozen Men ON I PIPER Floors Of Barn
ing stable Hold Tsrrinsd HerSes In
CsRtrOI while Fierce hattie with
PIaWes RACES MANY Overcome.

- ~" ~ pP"h ENSAHH - A'~f
ing stable Hold Terrified Horses In
CsntrOI white Fierce RattIe with
Flames RREes 3eIOw-Many Overcome.
What Acting Chief Binns described a.
n OF the most daring resoues he had
ever seen was made by two fremsn, who
saved three companions In q livery stable
fire in West Third street last night. There
were 27S horses and twenty-five mon in the
building when the fire started. One man
was severely burned. but not a horne was
lost in the fire, which was fierce enough
to call for four alarms. The horses wers
saved through prompt and effective work
by the fremen, whit held all but five OF the
horses in the building and kept them under
control, though fifty smoke eaters were
carried out, temporarily overcome.
The Metropolitan Livery and Boarding
Stable takes up -four city lots in Third street,
near sixth avenue. This building 10 four
stories high and runs pack to Minetta Lane.
About 7:90 o'clock last night smoke spouted
from the basement and in an instant the
place was in an uproar. On the two upper
floors were the 275 horses. The basement
and ground floors were filed with all kinds
Of vehicles.
Out " NUb btdDl0tncn YtiIcu 10 OuCCtlAu
Kobler OF the Mercer street station, who
turned in an alarm and rushed with two other
policemen, Ryan and Packard. TO the stable.
The horses were In panic and the best the
policemen and stablemen could do was get
out five Of them. In helping to do this
James Shevln, a stableman. was caught in
the flames and dropped by a window on the
| third foOr john Cody, driver for Battalion
T1.g.f Dill. ku,hl~ 49,. ktun N.,laA kfu,
out Of the window and carried him down
a ladder to the street. Shevlin was so
badly burned that he was taken to the 81.
Vincent's Hospital.
1T was my duty to try TO save the horses.'
said Shevlin AZ he was carried Of to
the hospital.
drove two horses from the fourth TO the
third floor and Then tried to get them down
a narrow stairway. A wall OF dame made
the horses bolt back and MoCaHerty jumued
to the second floor. lie was cut and bruised
but refused 10 go to the hospital.
1t was u lively blaze. with plenty Of smoke
when Acting Chief Binns showed up He
rushed in alarms one after the other. In a
few minutes the basement was red hot.
There il an iron grating in front of the
tlNlll(llDR anu tUlS IN TdiNeu 10 lcl HItilru
| into the cellar with hose. Lieut.. Crawford
and Firemen Heller and Morris Of Engine Is
carried in a hose and had their nozzle almost
up against the blaze when there came a
back draught.
The three firemen were engulfed in the
flames and disappeared. Chief Binns saw
the whole thing. so did Firemen Henvel
and Degnan of Truck 20. They ooh a
running leap and dropped into the furnace
The next thing those on the street saw were
Crawford and his two companions being
heaved up TO the sidewalk A they came
out chief Binns led some of his men and
played the hose on Henvel and Degnan
until they were dragged out too. A Hen
vel and Degnan were stretched out on the
sidewalk Chief Binns said:
Il have been a fireman fora long time.
l have never seen anything hraver.
shall never forget it
Then Binns had to look after what was
going on on the two upper floors Of the
building. The stablemen had cut the
halters OF the horses and the animals were
rushing round. screaming. The smoke
was thick and Binns saw that there was no
way to get them out. He rushed about
| three dozen fremen TO the two floors and
IOlu IOeth 10 uOtu tue HOTscr.
When the bea became too great the
fremen played the hose On the horses and
by soft words kept them in check. What
the horses could stand in the way Of smoke
the fremen couldn't. Fireman after fire.
man was hauled down to be laid out on
the street and worked over by doctors be-
fore he could 60 back to his Job again. Al
one time there were two dozen men on the
| gl-,an LaEA- -a.U,aatentAA na.H r4k ana
Of them would give up; they all fought to
go back into the building.
Joseph Montgomery, a goodman for
+. J. SmitheTs, a broker, who had some
horses in the building, tried to get them out
and was overcome, too. Fireman Hum
phreys OF Engine "a got him out.
On the Minetta lane side Of the building
the Iiremen we're pulling out wagons when
Harry Jan and Harry Hawks Of Engine IS
climbed to the third floor. Flames we're
belching from the first floor A heavy
| truck rushed down the runway to the
street, upsetting the ladder. On the second
floor was an iron railing TO which had been
hung a sign. As the ladder went from
under them Lane and Hawks dropped one
story and caught the iron railing. h
I flames swept up from the first floor and
the crowd in the street expected 10 zee
the fremen caught, but their companions
| raised a small ladder in a iify and the fire.
men slid to the ground only a little bit
scorched.
Two horses got loose in Sixth avenue
and bowled over several people in the
crowd. The Teservessfom three precincts
had a hard job. a. the electric lights in the
street went out and the searchlights were
used to light up the street for the fremen.
The building is owned by Bartholomew
Gray. The damage was about $50 900.