The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-08-28
TWENTY-S|X DIE IN
MOVING PICTURE
THEATRE PANIC
Wild Rush Follows Unwarrant-
ed Cry Of Fire"
VICTIMS ALL SUFFOCATED
Bodies Of Women and Children Drag
eed from Heap Of Humanity at
Foot Of Stairs.

Canonsburg, Pa, Aug. 2S.-Twen-
ty-six dead from suffocation, 25 injur
ed, 80 suffering from minor hurts.
That is the human toll exacted Satur-
day night during an inexcusazle panic
at a moving picture show in the Can
IonsbuFg opera house. The catastro-
phe was due solely to fear, as at no
time was there any danger from pic
tuTe film which developed slight de-
feet, but did not catch fire. There oc
Cured a noise-like "click" A small
boy shouted fire" at the same time
starting for the narrow exit.
Bolus Dubrowski, a foreign miner.
a giant in proportions, jumped from
his seat and ran wildly for the same
exit. In a moment there was a fight
ing, struggling mass after him. At
the head of narrow stairway leading
to the street the foreigner tripped AS
he rolled down the stairs he swept
others from their feet, who were await
| ing their turn to enter the theatre and
soon there was an indescribable pile
of humans at the foot of the steps
battling like mad
II was all over with short time,
| Volunteer firemen, several policemen
and a few levelheaded citizens I'M
tangled the human mass. The unhurt
and those slightly injured were pulled
from the top of the pile AS they
gained the street they ran screaming
like maniacs to all parts of the small
town. Next came the more seriously
hurt and these were sent home or Ia
ken to nearby houses. while a few
were rushed unconscious to hospitals.
Then the rescuers came to the bodies
of those who had reached the stairway
first One after another the victims,
many of them women and small chill
dren, were carried to the sidewalk. All
had been suffocated.
Dubrowski's wild fight through the
theatre and his subsequent stumble
down the stairs into those entering
the building, was the beginning Of the
death struggling jam at the foot OF
the stairs. The bodies clogged the
doorway Men walked over them and
fought for positions of safety until,
overwhelmed by the weight from the
moving mass behind, they, too, were
crushed to death. When the door
way had been filed, still other per
sons walked over the bodies OF those
who had gone down, and breaking
the glass transom over the door they
crawled through and dropped to the
lstreet
Meanwhile Manager Ferguson had
endeavored to stop the panic. Accom-
Ipanied by his wife he started for the
lstairs when the first alarm was given
but, seeing there was no escape there
made his way to the stage. Calling
loudly to the frightened people TO
follow him he led the way to the rear
of the stage. Fully 300 escaped In
this way. Persons standing at the en-
trance OF the opera house endeavored
to pull struggling men and women
from the rapidly rising pile OF bruised
and bleeding flesh, but TO no purpose
An alarm of fire was sounded and fire
men and policemen hurried to the
scene. When they arrived they lent
their efforts to saving those still with
in the building and to opening up the
doorway. In ten minutes the opera
house was empty and in half an houl
20 bodies had been recovered. PLY
sicians came from the town and from
nearby places until 80 were at work
The dead were carried into the stores
and residences. and the more serious
ly injured were fastened to the Can
onsburg hospital.
Many OF the slightly injured raj
about the streets until taken In charg'
by friends, while automobiles wer'
pressed into service to hurry others 4
their homes, where they later receiy
ed medical attention. Among thes
there were broken arms and legs, bu
I the greater number OF injured wer
hurt while making their way through
the transom and dropping from tn
fire escapes at the rear Of the building
Their injuries were slight in the ma
jority OF instances In many case
even the names of the wounded wer
! not given the doctors who attends
them. or the 26 dead. IL We're chi
4 dren, seven OF them pupils In the pull
lie schools. Yesterday II was decide
4 by the school authorities to postpon
. 90. "A ,,taaL tho nnaninp of tha qQhnOl,