The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-08-15
wv h ite City, Z Burns,
With Loss Estimated
at$100, 900, 600.
FLAMES DRIVEN
BY WIND STORM
sightseers to Number Of 10000
Fight Madly for Exits, and
Many Are Crushed or In
jired-Not a Section
Of Great Show IS
Saved.

& Saved.
brussels, August 1.-THE WHITE
City OF the "World's Fnir,'' as the
Belgians have called their 1910 expo
sition, 10 tonight a mass Of flames and
.smoullerins ruins. The loss IL esti-
mated Mt 800, ,OO0, 900. A spark falling
Into inlanmable material In the tele-
grnph building burst up In dame~.
which, driven by a high wind SWEPT
rapidly in all dircctions Soon tho
Belgian, English and French sections
were destroyed. The flremen and de-
tachments OF soldiers, called quickly
to the scene, found Themselves banned
by the yeritable gale, which carried
the burning embers to ALI parts of the
grounds.
& TO the left of'the main building arose
the picturesque roofs and spires OF
S"Bruexeiles's Kermesse." a Belgian
sConey Island, with water chutes. to- !,
Eboggan slides and scores Of side
shows. This place was alive with
Sunday crowds. and before they could
be gotten out with any semblance4of
order the Kermesse was aare. Thes,
crowds became panic stricken, and
men. women and children fought
madly to- escape. The exits became
choked with the struggling masses.
and men used their fists to clear the.
pathway.
Many AreeTrampled.
Many were trampled under foot and.
badly injured. An engine corps from
Antwerp attempted to dynamite the
bridge OF the French section. In the
hope OF checking the fire. but the
flames leaped across and engulfed the
Italian. Russian. Austrian. Japanese.
Chinese and Norwegian buildings.
Forty houses on the Avenue solbosch.s
adjoining the exposition, were de-
stroyed.
At the time Of the outbreak not less
than 100000 persons were circulating
In the grounds and the Kermesse.
Troops were ordered out to aid the po-
lice In clearing the grounds. This was
accomplished In fair orde except With
In the limits OF the Kermesse. where
the vast crowds became entangled In
an almost inextricable mass. fighting
desperately to esca pc from he flames.
Soon the enormous facade tumbled
In ruins. Considering the rapidity of Z
the sconflag lion. the small loss OF life
a
late hour tonight, only two are dead.
The injured. as officially announced.
number thirty but pro ba bly, many hun
,dreds received minor. hurts.
Left to Their Fate
AS the flames reached the menagerte
1t was decided to shoot the beasts. but
the heat drove back the soldiers. and
the animals were left to their fate.
Tongues of fire mounted high into
the heavens. and flaming embers were
carried off by the wind and fell upon
the residences beyond. setting them on 81
fire.. :55: ss$ b
The fire was finally gotten under
control. The Belgian and English sec
5tions are In ruins. while all tho other
sections. Including the American. were
partly destroyed.
Bands Of thieves engaged In pillage,s
and soldier was stabbed while at.s
tempting to arrest three men whom he
found rihing a jewelry exhibit
The aggregate loss#will be normous.s
The diamond exhibitors are heavy SUI
ferers E5 Il II sSS
Many jewel exhibltors we're sunin-
sured. InAthe French art section the 4
priceless Gobelins, paintings ana q
sculpture We're ruined, as We're tho IL
rich treasures In the English. B elgian. Il
Persian and Turkish sections. .All the n
archives were burned, and IL will
therefore be imposslble to confer
medals and dip Tomas, sBlsSl
The tiref was due to "a short circuit.
In addition to the panic that prevailed sss
In the Kermesse, there were several
minor panics at other points wit hin ISL
the grounds. and women and hildre1
We're crushed down in the rush. Some
OF the Wild animals escaped from their
cages and added terror to the scene.
1t is believed that several OF them ars5
still at large,
Belglan's White City stood near The q Il
end OF the Avenue Louise. the 5fnsh ion
able park drive. whic hon tho ,vast.Ss
sid OF Brussels leads out 70 the sheaur:F
tiful Bots p, La Cambre. The .lsr ionaIs
building. that OF the Bslgian section Il
rose ma desti ca on III 81 hit elsya tioaSEIa
facing the lnain on tran GO. 10 The Left III
OF the main bpildtns u WasS tas \ IkssI