Perth Amboy evening news., 1915-07-07
Many, Including Fire Chief
CoughIin, Overcome from
Sewer Gas.
RISKS LIFE SAVING HEN
Fire Chief, With Rope Around
Body, Ventures Into Receiv-
ing Basin This Morning.
A PULMOT0R Is SENT FOR
Oxygen Tanks Used to Revive
Men After They are Re-
moved from Basin.
Special to the EVENING NE Ws.

Special to the EVENING NEWS.
Roosevelt, July 7:-One man Is
dead, one in a serious condition and
several others, including Fire Chief
Coughlin, are suffering from sewer
gas poisoning as the result of enter
ing a receiving basin at Woodbridge
avenue and Houston street here this
morning. John Dalton, OF Third
street, an employe Of the borough, Is
dead from poisoning and drowning,
having become overcome so that he
laid helpless in water at the bottom
of the basin and died as the result
Of drowning.
Steve Sutch, who attempted to
rescue Dalton, was only revived after
the most vigilant efforts had been
exerted. It became necessary to
procure a pulmotor from Railway
and oxygen tanks from the Gold
schmidt defining plant here. The
borough's population was in a severe
state of excitement and for a time
it was believed that several were
dead as the result of encountering
the poisonous fumes The fire chief
and others were overcome while
heroically trying to save the lives of
Dalton and Sutch.
Dalton, the victim, was about sixty
years old and had been a resident of
the borough for many yeaers. He is
survived by a widow, two sons and
a daughter His body was removed
to a mortuary establishment, after
permit had been granted by Mayor
Joseph Hermann.
Clearing Out Sewer Lines.
Dalton and Sutch were working
for the borough, cleaning out sewer
lines when the fatality occurred.
Under the arrangements made, Dal-
ton went down into the receiving ba-
sin at Woodbridge avenue and Third
street to fill pals as they were haul
ed up by Sutch. The former had
been down in the basin but a brief
period, when he was seen by his part
ner to reel and fall to the water at
the bottom. Sutch then descended
to the bottom of the basin, a distance
of about twenty feet. He too was
soon overcome and fell helpless be-
side the PROSTATE form of his fellow
employe. People nearby noticed
that there was something wrong and
a call for aid was sent to fire COM
pany No. 2.
Coughlin Risks Life.
Chief Coughlin was the first to
risk his life in a vain attempt to
rescue Dalton and Sutch. With a
rope tied about his body, he ventur-
ed into the receiving basin So
strong were the fumes that he could
get but half way down before he was
overcome and had to be hauled out
Three times he ventured down and
he was overcome as often. Finally,
when he was too weak to continue,
James Miller, another fireman of the
borough, decided to make one des-
perate effort to get the dying men
By means of a rope and hook, enab-
ling quick work in the basin, he man
aged to fasten lines to the PROSTATE
forms and they were hauled to the
surface. He worked with a wet hand
kerchief about his mouth.
A pulmotor and oxygen tanks were
sent for. Drs. Mark and Messenger
we're summoned. Both men were
practically given up as dead, but
after twenty minutes of the hardest
and most painstaking kind of work,
Sutch was revived. Physicians be-
lieved they felt faint heart action in
Dalton's body, but all efforts to re-
vive him failed.