The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-04-29
UNITED STATES HAS GREAT FIRE
LOSSES.

Il
Federal experts who are making a
study of building materials that will
best withstand fire and who are there
fore taking a keen interest in the fire
| losses as they are reported for the
| entire country, declare that In spite
of all efforts toward better building
conditions, the death and destruction
due to fires and CONGREGATIONS 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 In April five big fires In
different parts of the United States
resulted in a loss OF $6.00000O, the
death of twenty persons. the injury OF
seventeen; and the rendering homeless
Of more than 5000. The greatest of
these fires was at Ft. Worth, Tex. re-
sultiDg in property loss of between
SO ,000. 900 and 81 900 900 and the second
In importance was at Rochester,. n.
Y, with a loss OF half a million dollars
"The people of the United States
have not yet learned the lesson of the
Baltimore and San Francisco f1res."
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 800 homes
were devoured by the flames, is but
repetition Of what has happened in
the past and what will occur in the
future until American municipalities
wake to the situation and enact legis-
lation which will absolutely prevent
the further construction Of buildings
that are not fireproof."
1T seems difficult to make the peo-
pie believe that In 1907, fires In the
United States cost more than a million
and quarter dollars for every day in
the year, an annual tax of more than
S5 for every man, woman and child in
the country. We are spending a bill
lion dollars a year on new buildings
and construction work while our fires
cost half billion dollars No other ma
tion has such an unenviable record
as this. Our fires are costing from
six to eight times as much per capita
as any country In Europe BY the to-
tai cost of fires, | refer not only to
the actual destruction of property,
which amounted to S2l5,0 900, but
also to the cost of maintenance of fire
departments and the amount of insur,
ance paid over and above the money
returned to reimburse owners of burn.
ed buildings.
While we are wasting several times
as much property per capita as Eu-
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.
mo other country suffers such enor-
| nous conf1agration losses as does the
United States and it is this class of
loss. due to the rapidity with which
fires spread. involving whole blocks
and cities, that requires attention In
spite OF the most efficient fire depart
ment In the world. for which American
| cities are celebrated. and in spite OF
an abundant water supply. all human
efforts are powerless when once a FIRE
| gets under considerable headway
where inflammable and fiimsy building
| construction prevails. with the result
that In every city and village In the
! United States there is ever present
the possibility of large loss of life and
| property"