The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-11-28
BAD SANTA FEFIRE
Big Machine Shropshire Damaged
This Morning.
Loss Will Amount to Sixteen
Thousand Dollars.
In EARLY MORNING.
Started at Four O'clock From
Overheated Furnace.
Good Work of Firemen Pre'
vents More Serious Loss.

The immense boiler and machine
shops of the Santa F'e shops were
threatened by an early morning nre 70
day, the damage amounting to $lo,ooo.
OF this the damage to the shop DullolnS
is estimated at $4,000 and the damage
to the machinery is about the same:
The flremen who came TO ehe rescue u
the burning building at first directed
their efforts towards checking the
spread of the flames and in this manner
the loss was kept at minimum. Ine
fire started at o'clock
A large force of men were put 10
work by eight O'Clock machinists, cleo
tricians and laborers and the work OF
eIaering out the debris is already Wen
under way BY tomorrow morning the
shops will be running again in rull
bIast axcent for the men whose ma
chimes are out of order The ruins TINS
morning presented bad looking slgnt
but by tomorrow there will be Dut III
tie debris left and the work Will pro.
ceed with almost a full complement OF
men.
One of the New Buildings.
The shops which extend south from
Seward avenue for nine hundred rect
is one of the first of the new buildings
TO be erected by the company and rep
resents an investment of probably $780,
600 with contents consisting of mach1n-
cry and rolling stock in the shops for
repairs valued at many thousands more.
Notwithstanding good headWay
vast amount of property involved the
loss will be comparatively small, the
fire being confined in a space not to ex-
ceed 200 feet.
'It will be impossible for me to give
an estimate of the loss at this time"
said Chief George Wilmarth of the To-
peka fire department four companies
of which together with the Santa F'e
shops fire department valfantly fought
the flames.
However the loss will be consider
able of course, due to the valuable
machinery which was exposed con-
tinued Chief Wilmarth. 1--WE feel
proud that it was not any more Sc
rious as it was burning fiercely when
we arrived. AS we left the fire de-
partment Headquarters we could
plainly see the flames shooting high
into the sky"
The. night watchman who makes
the, rounds of the building could not
give an Ineligible account OF how
the fire originated and he was unable
to state anything more than that the
fire had a good headway when he first
saw it. A night watchman of the
blacksmith shop saw the fire by
chance and ran to give the alarm but
the alarm had already been turned In.
It is presumed that a riveting fur
mace which is on balcony in the CEN
ter Of the building. on the east side
and situated between the first and sec
ond floors which was in service all or
y
stored varnish. oils and other highly
com bus-ible material. affords the ex-
PLANTATION for the origin of the fire.
The fire starting at the riveting
tower burned south for a distance of
one hundred and fifty feet. The roor
was burned through and just south or
the riveting tower where the fire was
evidently the hottest the steel frame
of the building was badly bent where
1t had yielded to the heat of the
flames
Fire Kept Under Control.
Workmen state that the furnace.
which fired to q high heat, had cooled
off at quitting time and was in it's
ever, that considerable heat still re-
manned. The furnace is fed by OIL
The balcony is just south of what
might be termed a species of an air
shaft and with flames once started the
natural draft which existed would fan
them into vigorous life.
Heroic efforts were made to keep
the flames from going to the south
where on the second floor was maSsed |
some of the finest and most ex-
pensive machinery in the entire shops. |
The efforts were successful. the flames
being confined on the east side of the |
building and for a distance of 200
feet south of the central portion. The |
machine shops which occupy a por-
tion of the building were not dam
aged in any particular, the loss be-
ing confined to the boiler shops.
Six lines of hose were constantly |
maintained One hose company each |
from Nc. anI No. stations, truck |
company from each and a chemical |
company fIom No. was the equip |
ment sent from the Topeka fire de-
partment While the Santa Fe shops |
fire. department co-operated. The |
water pressure was equal to the |
occasion. the water from the city's |
mains being turned into that of the |
Santa Fe shop main service which is |
supplied from its own local pumping |
station. |