The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-01-06
GONFLAGRATION
HAZARD CAUSES
GRAVE CONCERN
gad SCheid DenounCeS Electric
Wirinq Conditions and Says
Laws Are Inadequate.
INFERIOR CONSTRUCTION
CONSTITUTES A MENACE
,uopERTY OWNERS AND iNsUR
.NcE COMPANIES SHOULD
UNITE TO ABkTE EVILS.

r. fsri that salt Lakes present fire
.-,.scfi0n is faulty, due in the main to
srltv construction of buildings and theE
.,,ystor shafts and to the inadequate
siding ordinance, as told in last Sum
AVS Herald, has resulted in the open
-vnrsysion Of what has heretofore been
~ thought in the mind. Following
Chief Of the Fire Department w. H.
,gorss statement as published in The
1srsn TO the effect that Salt Lake
- serious conflagration mCnaces today
h in the uon-fiTe protective elevator
.Fsfts building laws that are antiquated
nd defective wiring of buildings, others
Isrs come out with open statements OF
- regarding conditions. OF these one
NJ the most interesting and at the same
ira one most worthy of serious atten-
,ioD is that OF Kari A Scheid, secretary
n district of the board of fire under
vriters Of the Pacific.
In his interview granted 10 Inc Hefalu
an the subject of the better fire protec-
i'm of salt Lake. Mr.. Scheid lays par
,s1Ilar stress on the matter Of the cleo
frca1 wiring of buildings and the non
Observance Of even the inadequate build
1g laws. AIr. Scheid said.
There are few cities as fortunate as
Salt Lake i'm be ng located so advantage
ouslv for a gravity water system, which
is generally recognized as the best and
having comparatively close at hand an
available supply Of water sufficient for
,asrs To come There is no reason why
saIt lake. with natural conditions favor
ing her 50 generously. should not secure
comparatively maximum fire protection
at a minimum expense, but the Work
should be done along broad and liberal
lines. having in view the future needs OF
a prosperous and growing city as wen
as those Of the present time,
Important Factors Overlooked.
ut Is not generally understood. I be
Eeve, how backward We are in many re-
spects concerning important factors
which deprive us Of greater security ami
lower Insurance rates. We rejoice over
our wide streets and forget our abnor-
maIIy large blocks, which are becoming
more and more COngeSted each year IS
the centers become built up, thus devel-
oplng a hazard Of block cGnflagrations,
Bhi,h, in nay judgment. largely offsets
the value Of our wide streets.
Anyone VINO has read the history Of
large fires must realize that our streets,
wide as they are. render US by no means
immune from a general conilaSrauon, 50
long IS each block constitutes in itself,
within the mercantile district at least,
veritabe 'confag.atiou-b breeder. It
should be borne in mind that there are
practically no means of fighting fires eX-
cept from streets, and to drag hose
around TO the rear of buildings through
aileyways means a valuable loss of time.
and q pressure loss Of about 80 per cent
20 80 feet of hose. To make matters
worse, buildings have been erected with
IN our most COngested district Of such in
ferior construction that they constitute a
menace to the city, and ought never to
have been tolerated.
The absence of protection to exposed
rear and side wall window openings.
either by approved metal-clad shutters or
wire mesh glass in metal frames, is so
general as to be almost characteristic
Culinary precautions against the spread
N fire within individual buildings, such
as fiTeproOf elevator shafts or automatic
traps for floor openings. boxing Of stair
ways, etc. are very rarely provided
Electrical Conditions Bad.
Electrical conditions are VIGOROUSLY
bad and there is no ordinance TO regulate
future installations. The stOVeDipe Ordi-
nance is practically ignored. The build
ms ordinance is imperfect, and. until re-
Gently, poorly enforced. The ordinance
Joy regulating the storage ana handling
o. explosives volatile oils and other high
milammables is very crude. Overhead
Elres for power, light and telephone ser
we still endauger the lives of firemen
and hinder them in their work Distribut-
Ms mains are badly CoTrOded. reducing
-.l NNl'd'IAN bN aA ttctSl ~ pei tent 4 il%
system is fun of dead ends. and the pipe
~ some instances, OF inadequate size. To
'Nrect. as far as possible. these adverse
ploiuons I would suggest the following
concentrations.
u That reservoirs with an aggregate
lalaCity of five DAYS supply for domestic
ana IRE purposes be constructed and con-
l5,Ied with the gridiron system by du-
Neale mains Of ample capacity.
\, That water mains be run through
SS ceutcrs and connected at both ends
'u distributing mains, and MIGRANTS
1gsd Tor handling fires from rear OF
y That an dead ends Of pipe mains be
.lected with Jhe gridiron system as far
y That present distributing mains be
vaseo by cleaning, or substituted to
%e'ee adequate capacity.
a. mat Sinch be adopted as the stan
~. ~ minimum size of mains for hydrant
CtlY ln the mercantile district, and s.
e U the dwelling district
nat water tower be added to the
sSIal equipment of the fire department
"a That q new fire station, equipped
- Steamer. combination hose and
meal wagon. one village truck, with
supply and proper complement Of
- ana horses. be established in the
TI.eStern part of the city.
r,s maj the building laws be revised to
btle better fir protection. especially
tr enforcement Of superior ConstTuc-
49, L large buildings, limiting the floor
protection of exposed wall and roof
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