Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1916-08-02
CAROLYN AUGUsT2 21oo Newse
$25, 100000 NEW YORK FIRE.
Warehouses on Black Tom
Island Destroyed.

Island Destroyed.
New York, July 30.--Property loss
estimated at $25,000,000, was caused
early to-day by a series Of terrific ex-
plosions OF ammunition waiting ship
ment to the entente allies and stored
on Black Tom Island. a small strip
Of lard jutting into New York Bay,
off Jersey City. The loss Of life sttn
was problematical tonight 1t will
not be determined definitely until
there has been opportunity to check
up the wcrkmen employed on the is
land and on boats moored nearby.
Two are known to be dead and at
least two more are missing. Scores
of persons were injured, some OF
them probably mortally.
Shock Felt in Five States.
The detonations. which were felt in
five States, began with a continuous
rapid fire of small shells, then the
blowing up of great quantities Of dy-
Mantle, trinitrol tunie and other
high explosives, followed by the
bursting OF thousands Of shrapnel
shells. which showered the surround
ing country und waters for miles
around.
Fire that started soon after the
first great crash destroyed 13 Of the
huge warehouses Of the National
Storage Company, on Black Tom Is
land, in which were stored merchan-
disc valued between SIP, 100000 and
100000. The flames, shooting
into the clouds, were reflected against
New York's skyline" OF towering Of
flee buildings, which only q few mo-
ments before were shaken to their
foundations as If by an earthquake.
Miles Of streets in Manhattan were
strewn with broken glass and shat
tered signs.
Early reports Of heavy loss of life
were impossible Of verification, and
the authorities asserted the number
Of deaths probably would be small.
1t was said that owing to the extent
Of the 'wreckage, it might he several
days before the exact figures could
be obtained.
Cause Of Disaster.
The cause Of the disaster had not
been determined tonight. Officials
Of the National Storage Company and
the Lehigh Valley Railway, which
also suffered heavily through loss OF
property, declared that reports to
them showed fire started shortly af-
ter 1 O'Clock this morning on barge
belonging to an independent towing
company that had been moored
alongside a dock used by the railroad
to transfer ammunition shipments
from trains to vessels in the harbor.
The barge, it was said, was there
without authority either Of the rail-
road or the storage company. The
officials refused to disclose the name
of the independent towing company,
saying they were Investigating "to
ascertain whether the barge purpose
ly had been set on fire as the result
of plot.
Thirteen brick storage warehouses
out Of the "a owned and operated by
the National Storage Company, and
six piers owned by the storage COM
pany and leased to the Lehigh Valley
road were destroyed. Several others
Of the brick warehouses were badly
damaged and some minor damage
was done to the Lehigh Valley grain
elevators. In addition. as far as Is
known, IS loaded cars were de-
stroyed
Two Arrests; Others to Follow.
New York, July 31.-Albert NJ.
Dickman, Lehigh Valley railroad
agent stationed at Black Tom pier,
and Alexander Davidson, superin-
tendent of warehouses Of the Ma
tional Storage Company, were arrest
ed to-day charged with manslaugh-
ter in indirectly causing the death Of
one victim by explosion of ammuni-
ton at the pier yesterday. A war;
rant has been issued for Theodore B.
johnson, president Of the lightering
company, one Of whose barges, load
ed with ammunition was alleged to
have been moored at the pier.
Frank Hague, commissioner Of
public safety of Jersey City, charged
the blame for the explosion lay with
either the Lehigh Valley Railroad
Company or the Lighterage Com
pany, and some of them had violat-
ed New Jersey laws, Jersey City or
dinances and rules of the Interstate
Commerce Commission by permitting
barges loaded with ammunition to
remain moOred at piers over night.
These barges were being used to
transport ammunition to steamers
lying in Gravesend Bay.