Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1915-01-29
FACTORY ABLAZE,
LEAPS TO DEATH
OUT OF WINDOW
Panic-Stricken Worker Fails to
Heed Call of Comrades to
Use Stairway.
100000 DAMAGES AT
TWELFTH WARD PLANT
ShelIac Machine Explodes, In
juring Operator, and Fire
Quickly Spreads.

was severely injured during hre
that badly damaged large oricK anu
frame factory two blocks from the
East Ferry street station of Inc Cen
tral railroad today. The dead man was
Charles K. Brown, fifty-eight years
old, of 245 Twenty-second street. lrV-
ington. He leaped from the tnlro
story of the building and died wltnin
a few moments after he struck the
s;da,,,o,ly Four alarms were sent out
for the fire.
Brown could have easily saved ms
life. but became panic-stricken when
IN, hoard the alarm OF fire. Instead OF
following companions who called to
aim to start down the stairway to the
street. he lost his presence of mind,
and, running to the nearest window
innped out The other men In the
1uilding all got out quickly, including
Conrad Rasmussen, who was burned
~ the flames. Rasmussen was taken
10 St. James's Hospital. Brown leaves
q widow, but no children.
The fire, which It was estimated
caused 100000 damage, all told was
in the old r. B. Peddie trunk factory
IN the block bounded by Maine. ST.
Francis, st. George and Komorn
streets. One of the annexes OF the
factory faces on Maine street. It was
from the Maine street building that
Brown leaped to death.
J. B, Gruman & Co. occupied the
Maine street factory, which was de-
voted to manufacturing purposes, the
C1ruman firm being dea' 'ers In spices
and powdered drugs. One OF their
outputs Is powdered shellac. A sec
ton on Komorn street was used oy
the c'ruman Company Tor storage;
Richbauer & Goldsmith, manufac-
turers of the Everwear trunk, occupy
the old mart of the factory that was
formerly used by the T. B. Peddie
firm. This part was not damaged.
the principal loss being 10 the MAIN
street and Komorn street frame
structures.
Cause of the Explosion.
The fire was caused by an explosion
in a shellac grinding machine OF the
Gruman company. 1t is supposed
that some foreign material such as
piece of metal got into the apparatus
and when the metal reached the
grinding wheels caused friction that
set fire to the combustible shellac. A
moment after the explosion the room
was filled with fame and smoke.
Rasmussen was operating the shell
lac machine at the time OF the explo-
sion. He Immediately shouted to his
companions, who all ran out but
Brown. Brown was attending one OF
the machines in the room. He prob
ably thought escape to the stairway
was cut off, but In this he was mis-
taken, as all the other men had little
trouble in reaching the street.
Rasmussen, who was seen at st.
,James's Hospital. gives his age as
sixty-two years. He Is Pole, re-
siding at Sc Komorn street. He has
been In the employ of the concern
for fifteen years. having been with
the Grumans when their mill was To-
Gated in Greenwich street. New Yo k,
and coming TO this city with them
three wears ago.
Rasmussen told an Evening Star
reporter that he has always worked
as a miller IN the factory and was
engaged as usual this morning at his
own mill on the third floor OF the
building grinding shellac. He wE4
feeding the material to the grinding
knives when suddenly he was startled
by a putting sound. as much l ke 9
thud as anything else. he explained
This was about 1880 o'clock. With
out warning a sheet of flame sho'
out from the rolling knives and en-
veloped him, burning his face and
hands severely.
Wafchman Sends In Alarm.
Like a flash the flames spread just
as they do when a japan kettle or
vat catches fire. Rasmussen gropeu
his way to the staircase, and sue
ceeded in reaching tho second floor,
where about a dozen men had just
started work. Two Of the men paid
attention to Rasmussen, while the
others, seizing buckets of water,
rushed upstairs and attempted to
check the flames. The fire had gained
such headWay, however, that thelr
efforts were unava!ling.
Andrew Halloran, the company
watchman, who was soon on the
scene, lost no time in trying to put
out the blaze. He sensibly rushed to
the private alarm box, 537, and called
out the fire department.
In Rasmussens opinion, a nail, ol
other hard substance, was imbedded
in the sheilac and in the process OF
grinding came in contact with the
steel knives. causing a spark, which
ignited the material, the explosion