Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-03-10
TENEMENT BURNS;
MANY HOMELESS

Palama district was threatened yes
| terday evening with a fire devastation
similar to the famous cOnflagration OF
| 1901 and had IL not been for the alb
sence Of wind and the efficient work
Of the fire department a large neigh
borhood in the vicinity OF King stree.
and Dowsett lane might today be little
more than a charred lot
A menacing blaze about O'Clock
started in the T. Ushikima store when
50-gallon gasoline tank caught fire
and the flames spread rapidly through.
out the long twostory frame structure
owned by Y. Ahin. For awhile Ii
looked as il the fire would spread to
adjoining buildings, but an hour of
hard work by the firemen applying a
deluge of water TO the hotter portions
brought the fast-rising flames under
control
Covered by Insurance
The fire was confined chiefly to the
upper portions Of the long frame struc-
lures upper floor but water did dam
age TO the first floor stores. The
building and another smaller one on
King street waikiki of il, which be-
longs to Ahin, were both insured
enough to cover all the owners dam
ages but many of the little Japanese
stores carried no insurance There
was $500 insurance on the large build.
ing and $3.50 on the smaller one, and
the fire insurance people say this will
cover all damages to. the buildings and
be sufficient to repair them.
Considerable damage was done to
property of the tenants who lived up
stairs In the tenement and this is hard
to estimate. Clothing, household
goods, dishes, furniture, crockery and
other belongings were carried out by
the owners or their neighbors and in
some cases ruined by being thrown
out of upper windows. .
One Man Badly Burned
Manuel Abreu, driver for an H. |
Hackfield & Co. oil truck, was the only |
man injured. He is at the Queens |
hospital suffering from severe burns. |
He is said to have been directly re- |
sponsible for the fire or at least the |
in an accident which brought !
on the blaze. Abreu was delivering |
10 gallons of gasoline to the Ushikima |
store which caught fire from the |
flames of a nearby coal stove. |
The gasoline container was instant
ly a. mass of flames and ignited the !
clothes of the driver who ran from |
the store into the street wrapped In
fire. Toney Fernandez, a well-known
musician who leads Hawaiian boys
music club, was on the scene and
yelled fer Abreu to lie down, which he
did. Then Toney stripped the flaming
clothes from the man, but not before
Abreu had been severely burned on
he back
Thinking of his team and the wagon
tank more than of himself, Abreu
1ravely mounted the seat nearly naked
lad Jfovesthe vehicle out Of danger
Then he was taken to the hospital.
Many Made Homeless
Over a hundred people ere usually /
hacked in the upper portions of the
tenement and these were OF course
shortly without homes. Neighbors |,
.ook most Of them in for the night and
Mrs. Margaret Carson, superintendent
Of Hale Lanakila.. offered to give
shelter to any who were temporarily I
without home.
The Japanese stores in order, start.
ng at Dowsett lane and going wal
xiki. which we're damaged by smoke
ind water and all of which are closed
oday are: r. 1wamoto general store;
rura, jewelry store; j. Tskaki, hard
|. Koshimizu, blacksmith shop; Y. lido,
secondhand store; T. Watanabe, bar
Ter shop; Y. Sato, billiard hall T. XII
ware establishment: Hirosaka, barber Fl
hop; Ueno, dry goods store; T. Ushi-
lima, candy hall, all in one building,
md Takakai, general store, and Naka- Z
nura, restaurant. in the smaller build
ne.