Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1909-05-20
LESSONS IN FIRE COST
Startling Deductions Made by
re lCTaI Experts.
FLlMeY ERECTION BLAMED.

Ney HdlSTldl LdDOIo
tories Points to Need of Absolutely
Fireproof Buiidines-No Other Land
Suffers So Greatly.
Federal experts who are making a
study of building materials that will
fore taking a keen interest in the fire
losses as they are reported for the
whole of the United States declare
that in spite Of all efforts toward bet
ter building conditions, the death and
destruction due to fires and conflagra-
tions in 1909 will eclipse all previous
records, with the exception of the
years In which the Baltimore and San
Francisco fires occurred.
They point TO the fact that in six
teen days of April five big fires in diff
ferent parts of the United States re-
suited in a loss of 100000 the death
Of twenty persons. the injury of seven
teen and the rendering homeless of
more than 5000. The greatest Of these
fires was at Fort Worth. Tex, result
ing in a property loss Of between Sc
100000 and 100000, and the second
in Importance was at Rochester y. y.
with a loss of half million dollars
THE people of the United States
have not yet learned the lessen of the
Baltimore and San Francisco fires"
said Richard L. Humphrey. engineer
in charge of the structural material
laboratories of the United States geo
logical survey. Fort Worth's recent
experience, when more than 300 homes
were devoured by the flames. is but
repetition of what has happened in
the past and what Will occur in the fu-
ture until American municipalities
wake to the situation and enact legis-
lation which will absolutely prevent
the further construction of flimsy
buildings that are not fireproof
TT seems difficult to make the peo-
pie believe that In 1907 fires in the
United States cost more than 81 $780,
600 for every day in the year, an
annual tax of more than So for every
man woman and child in the United
States. We are spending 81 .000,0O0,0O0
year on new buildings and construc-
tton work, while our fires cost $780,
100000. No other nation has such an
unenyiahle record as this. Our fires
are costing from six to eight times as
much per capita as any country in
Europe. BY the total cost of fires | re-
fer not only to the actual destruction
Of property. which amounted to S215.-
100000, but also to the cost of mainte-
nance of fire departments and the
amount Of insurance paid over and
above the IluEey returned to reim-
burse owners Of burned buildings.
While we are wasting several times
as much property per capita as Eu- I
rope, we are also destroying in these |
fires five times as many lives as are |
lost In the other countries. In 1906, |
according to the United States census, /
5000 persons died of burns and per-
haps 10000 were seriously injured.
NO other country suffers so enor- !
nous con1la grafton losses as does the |
United States, and it is this class of .
loss, due to the rapidity with which (
fires spread. involving whole blocks .
every city and village in the United !
States there is ever present the posi-
oility of large loss OF life and property.
The federal government is directly
interested in this question, because 1t
is the owner Of buildings valued at
more than half billion dollars, which
are not insured and is spending more
than 600 900 Dn0 60 I
structures. This building and con-
struction work is all intended to be of
permanent nature. 1t involves in
tereSts of such magnitude that the
government can afford to take no risks
concerning either the methods of con-
struction or the materials to be used.
II Is therefore necessary that its archi-
tects and engineers have definite infor-
nation concerning the fire resisting
qualities OF the different materials of
construction to the end that the gov
ernment buildings may be properly
safeguarded from fire within and with
out.
Carrying out this idea. the geolog-
ical survey, through its technoloeic
series of preliminary fire tests of build
ing materials, which will soon be
printed by the government in the form
OF bulletin. The building materials
were placed in a furnace. where gas
flames were forced by blast of air
against one side of the material. After
two hours, in which the material was
heated TO the point expected in a con
migration. the material was taken
from the furnace ana the water turned
on from a hose to get the conditions
which obtain after the fremen begin
their work The conditions under
which these tests were made were un-
usually severe, and ms none of the ma
teriai' passed perfectly il proved
good test for comparative purposes.
The tests are not in any way conclu-
sive, being the first of an extended So
ries of investigations. but they point
out the weaknesses of the different ma
terialS.''