Perth Amboy evening news., 1918-10-10
TWO CAPTAINS BURN TO DEATH nv COL ON/A HOSPITAL
Director of Relief Sums Up
, Work and the Influenza
< pidemic

At the meeting of the Red Cross
Emergency Relief Committee held
In this city last night DIR.
Thomas ]. Riley. general director OF
the Disaster Relief Work in Perth
Amboy, South Amboy and the neigh
boring communities made the follow
ing brief report as to what has been
done up to date:
II were to characterize the situa-
tion In q word, 1t would be this:
These communities have sustained a
compound fracture. The first blow
was the explosion, the second blow
was the epidemic. The explosion In
addition to killing a number of peo-
pie, drove 10000 out of their homes
in the twinkling of an eye, as 1t were,
and before the stricken communities
could recover themselves. the ebi-
demic of influenza swooped down up
on them and has prostrated some
5000 people.
II 1 might carry the medical ter
minology little further, the COM
pound fracture became infected when
pneumonia supervened upon infiuen-
Ia. The epidemic is spreading rapid
ly and we are so completely occupied
In caring for the sick that 1t is inn
possible to compile statistics. 1t is n
conservative estimate, however, to
say that there are probably S00<cases
of pneumonia, for / am told that up
to October in Perth Amboy alone
there have been reported 250 cases
of pneumonia.
Let me keep your attention for a
moment on the disaster relief alone,
SO far as 1t can be separated from
the epidemic. At the invitation of the
local officials and the Red Cross
chapters. the Atlantic Division had
on the ground by 2 o'clock Saturday
afternoon a large force of workers,
doctors, nurses. motors. ambulances
and canteens. BY 10:30 o'clock Sat-
urday night a scouting trip was made
in and around Perth Amoby and 1t
was found that there was only an oc-
casional refugee that had not been
fed and sheltered. Many had found
--,seir % nearby towns sssl1~~A
likewises--ediIy made as comfortable
as possible by the good people there.
! 1t was evident from the first that
South Amboy had been hardest hit
A tour of inspection showed that
considerable proportion of the houses
had been damaged or demolished.
Accordingly an inspection was quick
| iy made here to determine the safety
of the buildings and the nature and
magnitude of the problems involved
In making the dwellings habitable so
that the families might early return
to their homes.
An order was at once placed with
the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company
for window and door glasses In as
sorted sizes and for forty GLACIERS ana
the work of closing up the houses
! 1G-xIx 1of rnd w
forward within three hours from the
time the order had been placed. Local
Arms and workmen were likewise
promptly at work. While this work
was being done a more complete sur
yey of the damage to the houses was
made and by noon today more than
200 men and corps of engineers
from the George A. Fuller Construc-
ton Company began the inclusive
problem of making temporary re-
pairs to meet the emergencies of re-
turning these families to their homes
This repair work was begun in South
Amboy first of all. because the need
was greatest there. but Il VIII pe~ax-
tended so far as is necessary to the
other communities.
IL may not be amiss to remark that
in a disaster like this, 1t is the func-
ton of. the Red Cross only to relleVe
and prevent suffering and that 1t is not
the business of the Red Cross to re-
store whatever losses the house-ho
ers may have sustained. For example,
1t would be the duty of the Red Cross
to return a man and his family to MS
damaged house and to make him COM
Portable through emergent temporary
repairs, but it would not be the ousi-
ness of the Red Cross to repair ms
house If his family was not going TO
reoccupy it. In a word. the Red Cross
is a humanitarian organization ana
not an insurance company.
So far as the disaster relief work Is
concerned, to adopt the figure OF Gen.
eral Foch, l might cay that we have
reached the crest of the hill and have
now started on the down grade. The
work of sheltering people in large
groups and feeding them en- masse VIII
soon be over, but the work of helping
each family to readjust itself accord
ing to it's own peculiar need must IN
crease through some days and perhaps
weeks.
(Continued on page 3D.