The Charles Mix new era. (Wagner, Charles Mix County, S.D.) 1???-1911, 1910-12-30
CHEF KORAN, TWO ASSISTANT
CHIEFS AND THIRTY FlREMEN
ARE CAUGHT UNDER A
y FALLING CANOPY.
IN CHIC'CO STOCXYAFDS
Explosion of an Ammonia Pipe in Beef
House of Nelson, Morris & Co.
Causes Spontaneous Com
bustion.-Coroner's Jury
Watches the Fire.

CnlCasO, Illinois. - FIRE MarSnal
James Koran and twenty-five fire
men and two other men were killed
and forty others were injured in a
fare which caused an estimated
$500, 900 damage and which still
threatens the whole of Chicago's great
stoekyards.
A wooden canopy fell from the beef
house Of Morris & Co., where the fire
started, carrying with it tons of red
hot bricks and debris upon two COM
panies of fremen and the chief, crush
Ing them to death. 1t held their
bodies in a veritable furnace into
which their comrades were unable to
dig, SO that practically all those who
were not killed outright when the
walls fell were burned to death.
Assistant Chief William Burroughs
and Lieut.. Fitzgerald were with Chief
Horan under the frail canopy when it
fell and went down to their death with
their leader.
Claw FierceIy at Hot Bricks.
Other firemen, witnesses of the dis
aeter, deserted the other parts of the
blazing structure and, rushing to the
pyre, sought with their bare hands to
drag apart the glowing bricks and de-
bris to save at least the body of their
chief and his Inflated comrades. Find
ing this a vain effort they Obeyed
again the direction of Assistant Mar
shall Seyferlich and redoubled their
efforts to shut in the spreading area
Of destruction.
The blaze was discovered by a
~wateAman in the Morris & Co. beef
house, Fortythird and Loomis streets.
An ammonia pipe, bursting, started
spontaneous combustion that spread
SO quickly the Waterman barely had
turned in the fire alarm before the
flames burst from the building.
Seek Shelter Under Awning.
Yhe awning which later became the
destroyer Of a score of lives seemed
to offer a shelter from the sweltering
raves of heat that radiated from the
fire with blistering effect. Under this
the Ia fated crews fed for shelter. led
~ Horan, Burroughs and Fitzgerald.
Coroner's Jury Watches Fire.
Coroner Hoffman arrived early and
tnapanelled a coroner's jury, which sat
in Mortified silence watching the de-
Wearing flames. As the recovered
bodaes were brought out, mangled.
Searched, shapeless masses, the jury
itseN forgot its duty Of inquiry and
Joined with feverish efforts the hun
dreAs of civilians who were lending a
hand to the firemen.
S0On the newspaper extras on the
streets in all parts of the city carried
the news of danger or death that had
visited the firemen, and relatives and
friends of those iremen known to be
on dsky went in throngs to the fire.
Ont at her Ashland boulevard home
Ara Koran, wife of the marshal,
learned she was a widow, and disbe-
HeyAs until assured by the newspaper
reporters, she swooned in the midst of
her 1Uur little children. She was pros
trA4ed and has required medical atten-
ton.
A wrecking engine on the Chicago
ard Eastern Illinois railroad brought
WNAsr~A SOPPAnS ooSSi uSSiA6 IVA
cars into the ditch as it Int A road
scEaUer. attached to n of the cables,
soo0ReA up great masses of brick and
sa0rsAlAg hremen savagely pushed the
great scoop into the brick heap in
Aa2e q reaching the sufferers, whose
greA1s could be heard. ?
tt Fell at Their Posts.
LAng before noon Assistant Marshal
8eyfesiich, on his round of the fire
area. began to find here and there
pJeAe 1gures where before brave men
hi abeOd in the breath of the flames,
s&nKdny holding their own. They had
been overcome and their companions
had been unable to aid them. Some
recovering, started in anew to stay
the progress of the flames, but their
efpos4s we're too feeble to be of use.
OF che 20 men killed, the bodies OF
-, Including that OF Chief Koran, have
been taken from the ruins. The list
Of the dead includes the chief, assis
TAM chief, two captains, five lieuten
ants, 10 city firemen, two private fire
men and a railroad emplOye.