New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-03-28


Buildings should have police power ID
enforce remedies Of violations. AZ " Is
at present We can only Ale VOCATION anu
n the remedy we call fer Is not TAKEN
We can only 60 to the Corporation Coun-
so, for a civil, suit for damages NO
criminal action lies against any one
guilty Of a violation Of the Ia" or oI 'ii9
rules OF the bureau
Il would recommend. also that 'hstea'
Of outside FIRE escapes there shoui' w
Enclosed stairways In hreproof towers
and that all doors opening on thess
s.sirways should be Of the self-ciosins'
hreproof kind" .,
1n,us FRANKIE. If 40 d East 18th
street. who vas the consulting arcn'ect
If the Asch Building, said yesterda!
that 60 far as he knew no violation hao
ever been placed on the building
T vas not the original architect ne
said. but vas called in by MI Asch a.
consulting architect 70 gee that ne gov
. nrorer lob from the contractors lhat
the building is Nrerroof is shown oy 'he
fact that the wells and Aoors we're prac-
rcs,lv uniniured b. the FIRE on sa'uF-
day.
rhre. Fire. swept Floor.
There have been three other fires N
the factory Of the Triangle COMPANY
each If which swept che foor clean p"'
ia NO, reach 70 any other hoor IN
,rouh,e an SATURDAY. was that the nan'es
r. tha floors above. That IS an atsn
man, for vireelaes windows. end 'h!hA
that the law should provide lor VIZ"
glass IN all loft and ONCE buildings anu
for metal window frames.
orbe building vas put NJ IN strlc'
oor,n,iance with the law. There was no
,,rov;e,on for any particular "id'h W
s,a,rs and the stairs we're maze 70 ac-
con,n,odste what was supposed "cuio w
,,,a traffic of the building When y vas
ru+ I'm u was not known whether IL
,rou,d he used for manufacturing OF LOT
that purroee II vas only intended lot
general loft and business building
and Mr. Asch has always said that ne
wss ready 70 do ANYTHING that the bu-
reau of Buildings and the law required.
When the building was put up there
vas an opening from the court III "hio"
the fire escape ended through an alley
about Nfteen feet wide. Since then the
c1d buildings in that block have been
torn down and new ones put UP that
have inclosed the court on all slices bot
At that. the Asch Building is the only
one in the block with fire escape ana
,bera would have been no loss ot HE
there on Saturday il 1t had not oeen lot
rho manic among the workers. and that
&c something that no foresight can pro-
vide against except by fire drills.
II am an advocate Of regular fire drllis
in all buildings that are used Tor manu-
featuring purposes. Where the NUMBER
~ workers exceeds two hundred there
should always he fire drills 10 provide
against Just such pancs as took place IN
the factory Of the Triangle Company.
Joseph J. Asch. the owner or the
building. visited the scene OF the hre
Yesterday and made an inspection OF
the burned floors, after which he went
home to South Norwalk, saying that ne
would return whenever the District Al
tornev wanted him. Mr.. Asch went over
the building with Isaac stern, the SUI
perntendent.
"Of course | am distressed ar being
connected with a building in which such
a disas occurred" he said but
must say. in fairness TO myself. that
every regulation OF the law was COM
nlied with. If any suggestion had been
made to me that more fire escapes were
needed I should have been only too Will
ing 10 nut them up But I do not see
how any number Of fire escapes could
have prevented what happened Satur-
6av. As Chief Croker said: Il can fight
q FIRE but | cannot fight a panic" II
was the manic which did the damage
SATURDAY. II seems to me that there
was sufficient means OF egrees II the
girls had only kept cool
Mr. Asch went 10 the roof and the
condition Of the fire escape was pointed
out to him.
"It must have been the heat which
did that" he said. looking at the bent
and twisted iron
"And look" he added glancing into
the light we'll. none of these other
buildings have any fire escapes at all.
In that point he was correct. Not an
other one was to be seen.
one Of the other visitors described
himself as Thomas T. Freel. former
fire marshal OF the city. He pointed out
The fact that il the door To the Greene
stree, stairway on the eighth floor. near
which the fire started. had been closed,
.ba neonle on the floors above would
hove heen able TO make their escape
,ou.r the stairway without any trouble
obateyer. The people on the eighth
floor could have been saved by Inc
Washington Place stairway. as most OF
them actually were.
uo.cas asked II his experience LED him
o. advocate Are drills in factories such as
that.
"1 advocate nothing but good hose
he said.
Condition Of the Hose.
, A. examination Of the hose showed
, that il was unlined and that at many ol
, the landings il vas unattached 10 tue
G standripe. On the eighth floor appar-
+ emily an attempt had been made 10 use
I ,hs hose. but " had been Just as appar'
( entity unsuccessful
? y Skerrett, chief inspector OF hs
: v,ectrt,al Bureau. held that II vas I'M
have y