The Detroit times., 1913-12-31
Penned i'm Rooms, With No Ave
nue. of Escape, Victims Are
SuffOcated by Smoke and
Gases
n 1STAIRWAYS BURNED;
FIRE LADDERS GH6kEb
Men, Women and Children TAX
en- from Windows by Fire
men and Lowered to Street

NEW YORK, Dec 3l.-Eight per
sons perished. early today IN fire
(which swept hye-story brick tene
ment on Monroe ST. one of the most
hickly populated sections OF the East
Side. Seven Others were seriously burn
ed and six removed TO the Gouver-
neur hospital The lives OF score OF
other tenants we're endangered as the
blaze had gained such headway that
5tairways were burned away and fre
escapes blocked before firemen reach
ed the scene. Only heroic work OF
the part OF the fire lighters saved their
lives
The victims we're three women and
five men
\ AT an early hour today seven had
been identified The fire was OF in
cendiary origin and those VINO per-
ished were trapped in their rooms
and unable to reac hthe fire escapes
The identified dead are:
Eussie MazZfn, IT.
Isaac Weisberg, so
Pearl Weisberg, 10
Louis Kaplin.
Barney kaplin.
Becky Kaplin.
Israel Goland.
Sam. Cohen
When tremen reached the scene
dhey found the tenement roaring
mass OF fames. The stairways hao
been burned away and 1t was impos
sible for them TO enter the building
The Widest panic followed. Terror
stricken men and women choked the
windows aud fire escapes Flames
licked up the bundles OF clothing ana
rags piled on the platform or each
door and but for the heroic WORK of
the fremen many tenants would nave
lost their lives. Ladders were hastily
nut In place and the firemen passeu
men. women ana children down from
floor 70 floor until they were Saie on
the street.
Policeman Murray was the hrst 10
discover the fire. When be entered
the building the first stairway was af
ready a mass OF flames. NO one III
the building knew OF the nre untli
Murray shouted the alarm.
within a short time women ana
children we're shrieking for aid from
z, dozen windows. Scrambling out on
the fire escapes were men ana women
in scant night attire. suffering intense
Nv from the cold. As the names leap'
ed through the windows thelr gar
ments were set ablaze
Practically every family IN the teiie
ment lost everything they possesseu
N the are. Few had time 10 coipct
even clothing. .
tr addition TO the seriously injured
two received minor bruises and burns
bringing the total up 10 nine. Inose
injured either fell from fire escape
haIconies. were badly burned or lacer-
ated by broken glass. Mrs. esther
Koskowitz fell from balcony ana
"a feared to have suffered Internal IN
(uries. ,ou tho work Of
the fremen and policemen the uealh
toll would have been appalling More
than so men, women ana chlioreh
we're passed down the fire escapes py
0remen who formed human LADDERS
from Aoor TO floor though the nre es,
cape balconies on which they STOOD
were burning hot
A panic was narrowly aVerted III
the Beth Israel hospital, two Diocks
away. when someone turned IN an
alarm from a fire box in front or the,
lhuilding. Seeing the blaze in the tene-
ment patients thought the hospital wa
ment. patients thought. the hospia!
vas on fire Nurses succeeded in quiet
inc their charges only with the great
est effort
The fire completely destroyed the
tenement. causing loss OF about s25.-
100. In exploring the ruins the fire
.aen found that all the dead had been
.uffocated In their rooms They lived
Ia apartments that had no fire es-
apes.