The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-07-18
Jacksonville Times-Union. !

A spectacular IRE, enta1llng a los!
o. more than million dollars, earl,
Yesterday morning destroyed the mair
plant of the American Agriculture
and Chemical Company, located on tn,
river front in the Talleyrand section
northeast of the city. Huge stocks o.
valuable chemicals and fertilizer were
likewise destroyed. Thousands Of dol.
lars of damage was done to dock prop.
erty, and approximately forty freight
cars laden with chemicals and com.
peted stock, were consumed by the
flames.
Discovered at 4:40 A. M.
The fire was discovered at 4:4O a
N. in two parts Of the main building
ard soon after this the bursting of
chemical tanks added highly infam-
mable food to the flames. The intense
heat drove the fire fighters back at
often intervals and crippled their eff
fectiveness.
There is one theory. to the effect
that the fire was fine example of
spontaneous combustion among the
various acids and chemicals in the
big store room of the main building.
Superintendent Holmes was soon on
the scene after the discovery of the
fire. Assistant Chief H. R. MacMil-
IAN of the city fire department. went
to the scene with several pieces of
apparatus, which he placed in COM
mission to the best possible advan-
tage Intense heat and flying timber
from the explosion, made it impossible
to handle fire engine by placing il
at the property bulkhead.
The fire was fought principally with
the company's fire fighting facilities,
as the power plant, located in a brick
building, was some distance away
from the blazing structure, and in
not much danger of destruction. To-
tai absence of wind made the task of
the fire fighters simpler with refer
ence to protecting adjacent property.
Much Excitement in City
were most noticeable in the city prop
er, carried many people to the scene
OF the fire in automobiles. In the city
there was a feverish interest in find !
ing the exact location of the fire. I'M
mediately following each explosion |
great columns of flame were shot high !
into the air together with parts of the
roof which were hurled considerable
distances each time. Many who went
near the scene Of the fire received a
baptism of SCOT and cinders.
Owing to the proximity of oil re-
fnery depots and other plants, many
had their concern drawn to still
more tense point.
General COnflagration Feared
Just to the south Of the plant is the
city electric power station, while to
the north is the property Of the Mex
lean Oil Company. Other oil plants
in the immediate vicinity are those of
the Standard Oil Company, the Gulf
Refining Company and the Texas Oil Y
Company, consequently the possibili-
ties of the general conflagration were
impressed upon those who hurried In
the direction Of the fire.
The fire was the most spectacular
occurring here in some time. A gigan-
tic funnel shaped gray black cloud Of
smoke, lurid at it's base, rose straight
Up in the still morning air to great
height, and caught by the higher cur
rents of wind was waited westward
toward the city. Cinders fell in the
city fully five miles from the burning
plant.
Due to the highly combustible ma
terlals feeding the flames, the fire was
one of the fastest and most flercelv c
burning ever witnessed here. Fl