Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-12-30
OGDEN'S DANGER FROM
BIG CONFEDERATION
Insurance Examiners Issue Disaulcting
Report OF Conditions FayOring
Serious Fire Losses.

OGDEN, Dec. 30.-In justification OF
the insurance companies maintaining
their present high rates, the engineers
of the national board of underwriters
have Issued Il report of conditions cx-
isting in Ogden, which is anything but
satisfactory should a serious contlagra-
tion occur. The report in part says:
although buildings are at present
mainly low and small. hardly any are
of modern form OF construction or built
with any regard to preventing tho de-
velopment or spread of fires. Several
arc OF considerable height for toisted
buildings, and arc of especially hazard
Gus construction; a number arc of
large OF excessive area Interior wir-
ing Is generally bad, the fire depart
ment is too. weak to handle q fire under
much headway. the water supply Is in
sufficient and dependent on q single
main. Several group fires are probable
In many parts of the district, but since
block interiors are at present mainly
vacant, entire blocks would ordinarily
not be involved. nor should fires spread
across the wide streets. Manufactur-
ing plants are few and comparatively
Isolated. and minor mercantile districts
no serious hazard.
Lumber yards adjacent to the busi-
ness district somewhat threaten II In
times OF high wind. Groups OF shin
sled roof brick and frame dwellings
offer the danger of q considerable
spread OF fire by means Of flying
brands"
Summarizing tic citys fire-hghting
facilities, the report is more disquicting
1t says:
Water supply-Works owned and
operated by the municipality; organiza-
ton and management good.
Fire department-One volunteer and
two sfull-paid companies under a full
paid chief supervision. subject to pollti-
cal influences and financial support Is
inadequate; mothod OF appointment ex-
tremely unsatisfactory, response to
alarms weak: amount of apparatus In
adequate; fire methods good: building
inspections fair; headquarters records
fairly complete.
Fire alarm syStem-Automatic sys-
tenn. insecurely housed, box distribution
in unimportant districts good, in out
lying districts very poor"
FIRE CHIEFS REPLY.
I. j. Paine. chief of the Ogden fire
uep1i TIC bOiteInellS
by the examining engineers arc great
ly exaggerated, The entire report, he
says. is but a soarehead. issued from
ultcror motives. and tho best Of recon-
mendatlonS. while commendable, are
such as could be made to almost nny
city In tho United States OF Ogden's
size. Should they be carried out, there
would be absolutely no need or field for
insurance companies in ogden.
The report, the chief continues, IL not
based upon statistics, but IL merely a
mass Of con5ectures, founded on proba-
bilities. AS a matter of fact, Ogden
has one OF the best records of any city
of Its size In the United States. Tho
report compiled under government d.
rection for the year 1908 shows Ogden
to have suffered conflasration loss OF
Sc cents per CAPITA the population es-
timated at 2. 900. Only few other cities
of tho same class had lower aver
age, and these wero towns that COW
ercd areas only one-fourth as great as
Ogden. The same report shows that
Salt Lake. estimated at 100000 popula-
tion. suffered loss OF s6.68 per capita
Other towns ran AS high as $3S per cap
ia,
THE recommendations concerning the
strengthening OF the fire department
are valuable and should be followed, as
should the recommendations for bet
tor water facilities. but their claim that
the Ogden business district is open
to the hazardous condagration Is e0-
aggerated. The wide streets. the va
cant spaces in the rear Of the build
ings and the fairly good building con-
structlon are all contrary to the find.
ings OF tho report, and though there Is
much room for improvement, I see no
reason for such an alarming report as
that just made by the National Board
Of Fire Underwriters"