The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1911-03-12
OIL FIRE ON RIVER FRONT
TtG ENGINEER STUCK 7O POST
AND LOST HIS LIFE.


lND LOST MS LIFE.
Man! Craft Threatened BY the tlwod Of
nisxing OIL Homes ding Crowd HIATT.
ed Os tho Popping Of on Cans .Acc,.
dent to O'keene's Auto Geins % Fire.
The Pratt Oil Works in Will,amsbnr Q
had a ire yesterday afternoon at sun
down which destroyed it's canning and
packing. plant and burned out a pier
loaded with cans awaiting shipment
to the East. Flaming oil spilled from the
pier to the surface Of the East River
and set fire to nearby shipping. The
Standard Oil tug Protector. moored
closely iusho.e. couldn't pull out in time
to avoid the blazing scum Of oil and was
destroyed. Her engineer. Edward Brown.
who stuck to his post too long, was burned
to death.
Inc ire started few minutes b.fore
o'clock. just - the Williamsburg Bridge
afew blocks away. was carrying its bi ggest
burden Of homegoing workers. They
paused at the first show OF FIRE and watched
the flames a. they swept through the
canning factory and out upon the pier
and the heavy burden OF smoke 90 drifting
out over the river and the city.
As nearly as could be learned, the flre
got ito start In the canning and packing
plant. . structure which extended 200 feet
from North Twelfth to North Thirteenth
street and was 100 feet wide. It was at
. Are which started in the building on this
site that Battalion Chief George Graham
was killed two years ago.
A. soon - the first flicker Of fiame was
seen the FIRE brigade OF the works got to
work and did what il could to put a stop
to the spread Of the flames. But IL wasn't
able to mako much head against it.
Somebody pulled ire box. and as soon
a. the fremen got an idea Of the probable
extent Of the FIRE they sent in a second
and third alarm and later Q fourth.
This brought. in addition to the usual
complement Of engines. three fireboats.
The fireboats had to bear the brunt of
the work, for the flames .streaking through
the canning factory. reached the cans
on the pier and began licking them up.
Tho cans couldn't withstand the heat.
They began to pop. and tho oil flowed out
on the hoor OF tho pier and into the slip.
There were fourteen tugs. mostly be-
longing to the Standard Oil Company,
lying alongside the pier. with their orews
getting ready to knock OF work for over
Sunday. There were many lighters there
too and car float with forty freight cars
aboard. When the burning current first
began to dow it looked a. though most
Of them would be destroyed.
But the tugs. getting to work at tho
lighters. hauled them out into the stream
70 that the hrsboats could get At them
from both sides. Some Of them were
burning fercely. but the heavy streams
from the freboats' pumps got them Oh
with little charr:ng.
The Protector. however. couldn't seem
to get under way and the other tues
couldn't help her. She was furthest in
and caught the first onset of the burning
oil. Capt. Andy Bull. seeing that there
was no hope Of saving her. yelled TO his
mon to jump lahore. Stephen Bray. the |
fireman. and Sam Simonson. the cook, |
heard his order and obeyed.
They got out. with q scare but with
no burns to speak Of. Edward Brown,
he engineer. trying perhaps to get up |
steam so that the Protector could save |
herself. stuck to his post too long. He
,ame out OF the deck house just at tho |
moment when black smother OF smoke |
'wept down upon the boat. Later. when |
he freboats had had a chance at the |
Jug. they found Browne body lying along
'ide the rail. Brown was e2 years old.
He lived in First place. near Court street,
n Brooklyn.
For time 1t looked a. though the big
'il tanks would go too. Their contents
we're drawn on through the pipes leading
% the refineries in Greenpoint and Long
Island City But the lremen kept the
FIRE from reaching them. The pier and
he canning plant were destroyed at a
oss. 80 the police figured. of upward OF
slOO, 600
The canning factory has been burned
our or five times before The building
md the pier shed were sheathed with
iron and were reasonably
'afe from fires starting elsewhere. The
bier ran out into the East River about
100 feet.
The fourth alarm brought Chief Croker
rom Manhattan. Deputy Fire Commits
'ioner O'Keetfe OF Brooklyn. Deputy
'olice Commissioner Reynolds OF Brook
IN and Deputy Commissioner Driscoll
4 Manhattan. Commissioner O'Keeife's
went wild on the way, an axle
Mapped and he and his chauffeur, George
dundy. were badly shaken up but not
much hurt. Deputy Commissioner Rey-
Iolds caught a spark in his eye. but he
lidn't need immediate help from doctor.
Chief Lally and three of his men had a
light squeeze when they were busy wash
ng down the ruins after the worst of the
lre was done for. A thirty gallon can
# naphtha blew up and they were swept
" the force of the explosion. CHIEF
.ally's clothes started to shoulder and
he others-Owen Savage, foreman of
81 Engine; George O'Connor OF li2 Engine
nd Henry Krebs OF i5i Engine-were
inged and slightly cut Other firemen
working near by threw streams over
hem and an ambulance surgeon fixed
hem up no that they could go back to
work.