The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1908-03-14
|CHILDRfN BURN
in SCHOOL flRt
Nsarl, goo Roasted or Crushed N
P.nic-Doors Open inward or Are
Loci cd Against Escape - Little
Bodies pisfgured Beyond Recog-
nitior-Many Unidentified.

Cleveland, O., March 5.-Penned in
narrow Railways, jammed up against
doors that opened only inward, l1o
children In the suburb of North Col
Iingwood yesterday were killed by bre'
by smoke and beneath the grinding
heels Of their panic stricken playmates
The awful tragedy occurred yester-
day morning in the public school Of
North Collingwood, ten miles east OF
this city. At 10 O'Clock last night 100
corpses were in the morgue at Colling-
wood, six children were still unaccount-
ed for, and all the hospitals and houses
fer two miles around contained numbers
Of children, come fatally and many Less
seriously injured. Two teachers also
lost their lives in an effort to save their
charges.
All of the victims were between the
ages Of and IL years. The school
contained between 800 and 1876 pupils,
and Of this entire number only about
80 are known to have left the building
unhurt. 1t will be several days before
the exact number OF killed is known,
as the ruins may still contain other
bodies and the list OF fatalities may be
increased by number of deaths among
the children who are now lying in the
hospitals lowering between life and
death.
The school house was of brick, two
stories and an attic in height. The
number of pupils was more than norm
ally large and the smaller children had
been placed in an attic of the building.
There was but one fire escape and that
was in the rear of the building. There
were two stairways, one leading to a
door in front and the other to door in
the rear. Both Of these doors opened
inward, and it is said that the rear door
was locked as we'll.
When the flames were discovered the
teachers throughout seem to have acted
with courage and self possession and to
have struggled heroically for the safety
of their pupils and marshaled the little
ones into columns for the "fire drill"
which they often prscticed. Unfortun-
ately the line of march in this exercise
had always led to the front door, and
the children had not been trained to
seek any other exit. The fire came
from furnace situated directly under
this part OF the building.
When the children reached the foot
II the stairs they found the flames
lose upon them and so swift a rush
was made for the d or that in an in.
'tant tightly packed mass of children
vas piled against it.
After the fire had practically burned
tself out the work of rescuing the bod
es was begun by fremen and railroad |
mployes from the Lake Shore shops
he railroad company turned over one
\ Its buildings near by to be used as |
temporary morgue, and thither the |
n"lieu anu broken little bodies were |
emoved as fast as they could be dug
rom the ruins. Within five hours
practically all had been removed. They
Fere placed in rows in the Lake Shore
hops.
nominations were made only BY
neans OF clothing and trinkets. The
re had swept away nearly all resem.
nance to human features in the ma.
orlty OF instances. Distracted parents
DON began to gather and the work Of
Identification of the blackened and
tangled corpses began.
Inc grewsome task of taking ont tba
iackened torsoes and bits of human
was one of horror. A line Of
escuers was formed, backed by half
oxen ambulances. As the bodies were
ntangled from the debris thew were
assed along to the stretchers thance
to the ambulances, where
,ey we've mercifully covered with
iankets and then taken to the imnro
lsed morgues. pio-