The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-12-22
over Score Of Men Were crushs4
Just as They Had Succeeded
in Mastering the
Flames.
HYDRANTs FROZEN UP
twenty Dead Men Taken From Debris
Shortly After and Other Bodies
are Located in the
Ruins

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. Dec %
just as the firemen had succeeded in
getting under control fire which last
night gutted the five-story brick
buildings of lila, 1116 and Ills Bod
me street occupied by B. Friedlander
a Co., as leather factory, one of the
towering walls toppled and fell, bury
ing over score of firemen who were
working near 1t beneath mass OF
/ BRICK and plaster.
The wall, which faces on Bodine
street, fell shortly before IL o'clock.
vo OF the remaining walls collapsed
1 c'rectly afterward. At IL O'Clock six
teen firemen had been taken from the
ruins, which were still burning, four
OF them dead. 1t is believed others
| are under the ruins
! James G. Baxter, chief of the fire
department. was on the roof when the
walls collapsed, but escaped with
slight injuries.
The first OF the victims hauled from
the ruins was Charles Mcconnell of
Engine Company No. 23, His rescuers
i
! got TO him. The other eleven men
were all badly injured.
As soon as the walls collapsed the
electrical bureau was notified and the
ambulances of.St Joseph's, st. Mary's
the Episcopal and the Jefferson hos
pitals, wit'i their entire cogps OF
emergency physicians were rushed TO
the scene. Nine patrol wagons were
hurried there, also
The Friedlander factory extended
I through from Bodine to Third street.
The fire was discovered shortly after
, O'Clock and three alarms were sent
in one after another. the last being
turned in by Chief Baxter when lie
| saw the dangerous nature of the blaze.
he firemen We're at once confront
ed With a serious obstacle. With
two exceptions every fire plug in the
/ vicinity was frozen up and out of
4 commission. While work was begun
4 to thaw out the other plugs. lines OF
hose were attached to the two that
were seryiceable and two streams be-
gan to play upon the flames. In an
4 inereditably short time the entire
factory was ablaze. Without sufficient
water the firemen were powerless.
! When the flames had begun to die
I down of their own accord, ladders
We're placed against the Bodine street
wall of the building and lines of hose
\ We're dragged up. A score or more of
/ firemen entered the burning ruins and
other streams were turned on the
blazing pile. when. without warning,
the Bodine wall swayed. toppled and
fell. With the wall went the ladders
and their human freight Part Of the
wall crashed into the street, the
I rest into the building.
/ The wells and shrieks OF the falling
tiremen warned their companions with
in the building Those who were
buried inside the building were in a
bad plight as the ruins on which they
were thrown were still burning fierce
1y.
The first man taken from the pile
was Charles Mcconnell 1t needed but
a glance TO convince his rescuers that
he had been crushed to death Rapid
ly the other imprisoned firemen we're
dug out, until eleven more had been
rescued and hurried to hospitals In
addition 10 Mcconnell, three others
We're taken out dead At midnight
roll call Of the firemen showed that
twelve more were missing.