The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1917-04-05
POWDER FIRE SENDS
81 TO HOSPITALS
8 Girls Likely to Die as Re-
suit Of Flareup in Jersey
City Factory.

At twelve minutes past O'Clock
yesterday afternoon nineteen girls were
gossiping merrily over their work in E.
10. Budle's munition factory on West
Side avenue, at the foot OF Fulton
avenue, Jersey City. They were en-
gagged in making caps for three inch
shells. and they sat on either side OF a
long table with black powder stacked
in front of each like so much sugar.
They. were in the one long room Of the
factory; watching them was an in
spector, ana serving them was one boy.
girls. lifting a tray. struck its edge
against a piece of metal. A spark
leaped to a pile Of powder and flame
swept the length of the table, reaching
each girl in the place as she sat on
i'er high stool close to the table.
A few minutes later some policemen,
summoned by alarmed neighbors Of the
factory, broke in. to find a scene OF
great anguish. Some Of the girls lay
Upon the floor, the c-othes burned from
their bodies. screaming through burned
lips beating with their fists against
sightless eyes, their hair burned from
their heads, their eyebrows scorchsd
away. their faces singed. Others ran
around the place permanently or tenn
porarily blinded. dashing against the
wall or the windows in their search
| for the door, which they could not md,
or plucking black flesh from their hands
or faces to tear away the pain that
/ assailed them.
! The man and boy also were caught by
the same flame. OF the twenty-one VIC
time the three hospitals in Jersey City
to which the injured were taken reported
! that eight girls are almost sure to die
and that possibly few more Will join
them
Those whose recovery is considered i'm
possible arr: Sadie Quist. IS. - Nir-
ginia avenue. Jersey CITY Mildred
| Krupp. lg. 26 woodlawn avenue. Jersey
| CITY: Julia Dahien, 20. 1909 Hudson
! Boulevard, Jersey City Catherine Schef-
fer. 23, 33 East Twenty-eighth street
! Helen Hartman, 222 Stevens avenue.
Jersey City; Margaret Sherry. 10. 2l7
Cu,der avenue. Jersey City; Elsie Wad-
deli. IS. 4Os woodlawn avenue. Jersey
city. and Veronica Brennan, y, $50
! Monmouth street, Jersey CITY.
| Nine girls were taken to the City Hos
! n;,ai. seven girls, the man, Paul kosco'
IL. of 454 West l52d street, Manhattan
, and the boy were taken to the German
| Hospital, and three girls we're taken 10
/ st. Francis's Hospital.
! one OF the few girls who could talk
after the accident was Mary Flemming
81 of 57t Bramhall avenue. Jersey CITY.
! She didn't know the identity OF the gir'
who was responsible for grating the tray
against the table. but she said she saw
! II happen.
! The tray had a metal bottom, sine
said. and was loaded with primers. The
| nareup swept the length Of the table toe
quickly for any OF the girls TO move
from their seats. she said.
All the ambulancss OF the City, Ger
man and St. Francis's hospitals were
! rushed to the place and went bach
loaded with injured. Except for the on'
fash there was no fire. The table wa:
badly scorched. but the walls and th'
windows were not even singed by tht
fame.
| Budlo and his foreman, Robert
Brown. were not in the factory wheI
the accident happened.