New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1916-08-02
Terrific Blast in
New York harbOr,
LOSS IS s25,ooo,ooo
War Material for Entente A.
lies Is Destroyed.

New York, July 31.-Property loss
estimated at 325,O00O0O was caused
by a series of terrific explosions of
ammunition awaiting shipment to the
entente allies and stored on Black
Tom island, small strip of land jut-
ting into New York bay, off Jersey
City. Officials are investigating
charges that the fire was a result of
plot.
The loss Of life is problematical. It
will not be determined definitely I'M
til there has been opportunity to check
up the workmen employed on the is
land and on boats moo1ed nearby.
Three are known to be dead and at
least i've more are missing. Scores
OF persons were injured, some of
them probably mortally.
The dstonations-felt In five states
began with continuous rapid fire
Of small shens, the blowing up of
great quantities Of dynamite, trinitro-
toleuene and other high explosives,
followed by the bursting Of thousands
Of shrapnel shells which literally
showered the surrounding country and
waters for many miles around.
Fire that started soon after the
first great crash, which spread death
and desolation, destroyed thirteen of
the huge warehouses of the National
Storage company on Black Tom is
land, in which was stored merchan-
disc valued between $12,OO0,000 and
SIS, 900, 900.
The flames, shooting into the
clouds were reflected against New
York's skyline of towering Office
buildings, which only few moments
before had been shaken to their foun-
dations as If by an earthquake.
Miles Of streets in Manhattan alone
were strewn with broken glass and
shattered signs.
Early reports Of heavy loss of life
we're impossible of verification and
the authorities asserted the number of
deaths proba bly, will be small.
It was said that owing to the extent
of the wreckage it might be several
days before the exact figures could
be obtained
Statue Of Liberty Damaged.
Every window in the pedestal of
the Statue of Liberty on Bedloe's is
land was broken and the main door,
made of iron and weighing almost
ton, was blown off it's hinges. The
statue was not damaged The famous
Light of Liberty" burned steadily
throughout the hours of the confagra-
ton, flaming high above the pail of
smoke
Captain A. B. Frye, supervising en-
gineer of the federal buildings in New
York, said the loss to buildings on
Ellis island could not exceed $4,000.
Most Of the damage at the immigra-
ton station was caused by the force
of the explosion, which wrecked walks
and buildings and shattered windows
and doorways. Two barges, ablaze
and laden with shrapnel shells, had
drifted to the island from the scene
of the disaster.
A municipal fireboat and tug aided
Ellis island employees to fight the fires.
An explosion on one of the barges
damaged the structure housing the
power plant. Two other fire swept
craft grounded on the southwest cor
ner Of the island. The medical staff
removed the $50 immigrants on the is
land to the battery.
The cause of the disaster has not
been determined Officials of the Ma
tional Storage company and the LIE
high Valley railroad, which also suf-
fered heavily, through loss of proper
ty, declared, however, that reports to
them showed a fire started on a
barge belonging to an Independent
towing company that had been moored
alongside dock used by the railroad
company to transfer ammunition ship
ments 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 of,
f1cia1s refused to disclose the name OF
the independent towing company, say.
ing they were investigating ito ascer
tain whether the barge purposely had
been set on fire as the result of q