The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-09-28
Follows In Biz Building.
TWENTY-FIVE PERSONS HURT
Explosion Damages Eight Story
 Structure.
Brave Elevator Boy Rescues Many From Fire, Although Himself Badly Burned--Loss Es-
 timated at s2ooy0eo.

Pittsburg. Pa, Sept. 27.--An explo- sion today in the offices of the Colum- bian Film Exchange, located in the Ferguson building. In the heart of the down town district, injured from fifty to seventy-five persons. many of them seriously. and caused damage estimated ct about t30o.000.
 4 thorough search of the ruins failed to disclose any dead and all the eIn- ployes of the film company were &C., counted for.
 A score of the injured were taken to hospitals.
 The force of the explosion was so great that the south wall of the Fer guson building. on Third Avenue, was blown out. The remaining walls were badly damaged and the building ln- spector immediately ordered them rased. Windows for fully square on either side of the explosion were brok- en and a number of pedestrians mak n 6 their way along Fourth Avenue. the Wall Street" of Pittsburg. were cut by falling glass. The explosion was caused by an electrical spark.
 The spark ignited a film In a vault employees of the film company all es- capped from the ofice.
 Although 1t was at first believed sey- eral persons had been killed. the first two hours search in tbe ruins failed to reveal any bodies.
 The explosion bulged out the walls and damaged every once In the build ing. which Is eight stories high.
 Twenty-Five stenogrsphers employed at the offices of the Smith Premier Typewriter Company were seriously cut when large plate glass windows were showered upon them by the explo- sion. Most of the injured are in a se- rioue condition.
 Planes EnveIop Building.
 Immediately after the explosion al- most the entire building seemed to be enveloped in @ sheet of flame. The many hundred occupants Of the build ing rushed idly for the exits. They damned on the stairways and their screams could be heard In the streets, causing much excitement among the thousands who quickly oenRregRted in the vicinity. Many others rushed tc the au0re Of the elevators.s F1ghtima like dernohs they brake acwn the screen work encasing the shaft and pleaded with the elevator boys to save thsfn-
 Roy Barclay, an elevator operator, describing the explosion, said:
 T was at the second floor when heard a sizzling noise similar to the fuse of a fre-cracker burning. knew something was wrong and dropped the car to the first floor to let the passen- gers off Just as they were alighting the explosion came and the building was flled with flame. From all parts of the structure came shouts and l heard a lot of people on the fourth floor crying for the elevator. ran my car up there and found a large crowd battering around the iron frame work of the elevator shafts. Hundreds were running down the stairways through the blinding smoke and dust from fall ing plaster. damned the car full and started for the first floor. When the car reached there we carried most of the women out in an unconscious con- dhtion."
 Barclay was seriously burned but made ten trips through the flames and smoke before he would give up his car and have his injuries attended to.
 John Miller. manager of the Colum- hian Film Co. was out when the ex- plosion occurred. He was at loss to account for the disaster. He said there were seven persons employed in the offices.
 John K. Jillets, shipping clerk of the film company, made 6 statement In which he said. the explosion occurred In the vault Jlllets said he went into the vault which is three feet wide and six feet high. to get film. When he turned the electric light on. spark shot from the switch and ignited one of the films He jumped from the vault. slammed the door and shouted to the others to run. As tley reached the cnrrfdor tha axnIosior occurred.