Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-09-12
GIRLS ESCAPE IN
$4,000 FIRE BY
WALKING PLANK
Three=Alarm Blaze Cuts Five
Story Factory at Austin
and Murray Streets. i
ONE MAN is INJURED In
5O-FOOT LEAP TO LlFE-NET
Employees Disregard Smoke and
Flames to Lock Up Valuable
Gold Supplies.


life net. dozen fainting girls were
carried down ladders and smoke-f1lled
Railways, while scores of other girls
walked across narrow planlking fifty
feet in the air at a three-alarm fire to-
day which scooped out the interior of
the flve-story double brick factory build
in; at Austin and Murray streets. The
loss to the building and the tenants, all
manufacturing jewelers., is estimated
at S150,000.
The Salvage Corps at noon estimated
the loss at $4,000.
Elmer Hortenstein, "a years, of 21O
Avon avenue, is in the City Hospital
with internal injuries.
Before the fire gained headway MEM
bers of the several firms and their
clerks, in wonderful burst of activity.
gathered up most of the precious metals
used in their business, hurled 1t into
safes and slammed the big safe doors.
Although the fire was hot one, all
this valuable material is believed to be
intact.
Thousands gathered in the street and
watched the thrilling escapes OF the
girls and the heroic work of the fire.
great drain on the water service in
that section the factory district near
about was temporarily shut down.
The fire was discovered by several of
the girls in the finishing department of
the Eastwood Pari1e Company. manu-
featuring jewellers and silversmiths, on
the second floor of the building. The
other tenants, all jewelers., are dis
tributed about the building as follows:
First floor, Eastwood Parke Company;
part of second floor, Lowres Optical
Company; third floor, Henry Zirutn;
fourth floor, Shiman- Miller Company;
fifth floor. Eckfelt & Ackley, and Har-
vey V. Osborne.
Extraordinary Fire.
The girls screams attracted Henry
Helmhauser, who worked on the third
floor He had his hands badly burned
trying to put out the blaze. George
Klement, another employee. ran to box
1926 and gave an alarm at S:15 O'Clock
When the first engines got on the
scene it was plain that the fire-f1ghters
had an extraordinary fire to fight and
that a loss of life was threatened, as
the girls were seen at windows ana
their screams could be plainly neard-
A second and third alarm were
sounded.
Hartenstein and several girls were
seen at windows on the top floor. Their
escape was completely cut off, appar-
emily. as the only hallway exits were
filled with smoke, and flames enveloped
the inadequate f1re-escapes in the rear
centre part of the building. dozen
firemen manned the life-net. and Hart
a
of the net and then rolled over to the
pavement. He wac picked up by Pa
trolman AL Cleveland and taken TO
the City Hospital 1t was said at noon
that his injuries are not serious.
Meanwhile there was shout of joy
as the girls scampered down to the
fourth floor To the north of the blaz-
ing building in Austin street another
five-story structure was in course or
erection The workmen had built the
framework as far as the fourth story
The men had just began work for the
day.
workmen Rescue Girls.
Led by their foreman, they placed
nlanks from the fourth story of the un-
finished building to the corresponding
floor on the burning building Across
this plank the girls walked in Indian
file. while the crowd in the street yelled
it's approval.
After all the girls had crossed the
plank In safety Vernon Palk, foreman
for Shiman- Miller Company, carried an
old man, whose name is Victor, across
the plank on his shoulders
Meanwhile f1remen running through
the building found faintlng girls on
almost every floor and for time It
was feared that there had been great
loss of life. Van Ness, Campbell, Dun
lap, and Eisner, of the Salvage Corps,
carried these girls down ladders while
the crowd cheered their work. Annie
Ticket and Mabel Brewster, SO COM
merce street; Anna Powell, 354 Badger
avenue; Ethel Craven, " Hunter
street; Adeline Palmer. 164 Astor
street. Martha Mohr. 127 South Seven
teenth avenue; Mary Sammet, 3l6 Run
Won street, and Mollie Konrower, 152
Livingstone street.
When 1t was discovered that all or
the 300 girls and 200 men We're out OF
the building the firemen concentrated
their forces, confining the flames to
the building, and in an hour had the
blaze under control.
Loss Covered by Insurance.
Then began an inventory of the losses.
Nearly all of it is covered by insurance.
The building is owned by the Shiman
Brothers, Morris and Simon, who have
their main Office at 81 Maiden lane.
Manhattan The building was valued
at $4,000 and the loss is said to be
about one-half that. Osborne claims a
loss of S25O00. The Shiman- Miller Com
pany estimates the value of their stock
at 500, 600. but most of their valuable
stock is in the safe. The same valua-
ton is placed on the stock of the East
wood Park Company. A great deal OF
this valuable stock also escaped the fire
in safes. The building was put up a
year ago last May. AS the fire was
conquered before 1t did much damage
on the fifth floor the Eckfeldt & AclSley
Co. didn't suffer much.
Charles W. Park, of the Eastwood
Park Company, at noon estimated his
firms loss at $4,000. The shiman- Mill