New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-06-14
BELLEVUE CONQUERS A
FIRE, AVOIDING PANIC
Twice 13 Mothers and 13 Babies
Endangered in New Pavilion
on 18th Day of Month.
BLAZE IN MATERNITY WARD
Drying Room Catches Fire, Nurse
Sends in Alarm, Physicians
Turn Firemen and Music
SoOtheS the Patients.

Splendid discipline maintained by med
ical men and nurses and quick work by
its own fire brigade prevented a panic
and conquered blaze in Bellevue Hos
pital yesterday afternoon. OF the four
hundred and more patients in the build
ing where the fire occurred few knew of
the danger until it had passed.
The fire was on the sixth floor Of
Pavilion AB, the building recently COM
pleted. which is TO form part of the new
$15,OO0.OO0 Bellevue. This pavilion is
six story brick freproof structure at the
foot of East Goth street, near the
Norgue The fire originated In and was
confined to a drying room in the hall
way on the top floor, between Wards A6
and B6. used for maternity cases. and
near two rooms. known as babies rooms,
where newly born infants are cared for.
There were thirteen babies in these
rooms yesterday, which was the 18th Of
the month, and there were thirteen
patients in each ward. Some Of the at
tendants regarded such condolences as
ominous.
The drying room in which the fire oc-
CURED is 6 feet high, feet wide and 3
feet deep. Coils of steam pipes are used
for raising the temperature. Some
fiimsy article of clothing in contact with
superheated steam pipe may have
caught fire, the blaze spreading TO other
. oTc fnaIi,y
igniting the woodwork of the room.
Miss Carrie Ennis. the nurse In charge
of Wards A6 and B6, discovered the fire
and promptly smashed the glass in the
auxiliary fire alarm box in the hall. send
Ing in an alarm. Then she called the
telephone room and said there was fire
In her building. The news was sent to
the boiler room, where, in accordance
with the thorough system of fire drills,
the engineer blew the whistle, showing
there was q fire, and its location.
Quickly, but very quietly, the fire
brigade composed Of physicians. clerks,
orderlies and other employees. went about
their duties as provided under the fire
drill, which they practise twice a week.
Miss Ennis and her three assistant
nurses. the Misses Cavanaugh. Shea and
Hoe. went among the patients in the
maternity wards and told each in turn
afraid. Two of the thirteen women in
each ward were frightened-Mrs. Elmer
Bronton, in B6 and Annie O'Brien. in
A6 They tainted, and We're cared for by
the nurses. The others were brave and
took q cheerful view of the danger.
DIR. c. A. Reid, who has charge of the
pavilion, was early on the scene. He
went among the different wards, quietly
,retructing the nurses to close the win
dovs so the patients would not smell the
smoke. and starting the music boxes in
oil the wards so the noise the fire fight
orr might have to make would be
drowned with selections from the operas
or the comic songs Of the day. So clev-
erlv was this done that no patients be-
low the fifth floor knew there was a fire.
The fire fighters. in command Of Super
,is,ne Engineer James Hawkins. chief OF
the hospitals fire department. and his
assistant, Daniel Collins. tackled the
hiaze in the drying room I'm the same
calm manner. Not voice was raised
there was no running no noise.
A corps of physicians, including Drs
c,a,terv. Donovan. Vosburgh, Rutledge
ond Hill, aided pr Reid in keeping the
,,atients quiet in Wards A6 and B6. The
aro burned briskly half an hour and
,louds Of smoke rolled out Of the open
,,ndows on the top floor. but it was
e,a,ly put out by Bellevue's own fire
,r,eade without calling on the city de-
,,ortment Th' damage was not more
than 500