Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1919-04-10
MUCH ALARM FOR
VERY LITTLE FIRE
Recollection of Big COnflagration
of One Year Ago Sends Many
People to Small Blaze at Plant
of Vermont Milk Chocolate
Company
Company

a very slight amount of damage. less
than $50 in fact so officials of the COM
pany stated to the Free Press, was caused
Monday night shortly after nine O'Clock
at the plant of the Vermont Milk Choco-
late company, by smoulderlng fire caused
by cocoa dust in two huge steel cyclone
containers in the cocoa packing ROOM
The entire fire department was called to
the scene by the sounding of box 81, locat-
ed at Park avene and Pine street The
person who pulled the box was evidently
afraid that nobody would respond so It
was pulled again, and the second alarm
aroused the city to the widest sort of
dreams as to n possible conhagration
Five lines of hose and several chemical
lines were laid by the department, which,
together with a line laid by the employees
of the Chocolate company, soon had the
blaze extngushed though 1t was neces-
sary to pull down the pipes connecting the
two cyclones to wet down the cocoa dust
inside. Several automatic sprinkler heads
were also set off, which wet down the fac
tory in good shape.
There was at no time any danger Of a
serious fire as the cocoa room is situated
in n two-story brick and concrete factory
constructed along the best lines known
to modern science as absolutely fireproof
The building has specially constructed
doors that open either way and similarly
constructed skylight, both of which. in
the event of an explosion of hot air or
cocoa dust, which is not infrequent in a
business Of such nature, would be atomat-
ically thrown open by the force of the ex-
plosion and the heat and flames sent into
the open air, The walls and floor arc
all of concrete and the only things of
wooden material in the room or building
were a number of long wooden tables.
At the time the fire was discovered
there were about ten or fifteen men
working in the room. A thin curl Of
smoke was seen coming out of the pipe
running from tn building situated
across a driveway where the cocoa is
heated and then forced through the
pipe overhead to the building where 1t
is packed.
Several hundred people, when they
heard the second alarm, hurried to the
scene of the fire or rather attempted to
go for the mud was knee-high in many
places and the walking was terrible,
the riding worse. Several automobiles
were seen by the Free Press reporter
to be stuck in the mud up to their
hubs and many were the persons who
went down on all tours in the Shiny
mud and water. Park avenue was a
regular bog of slime holes and sticky
clay.
Everything from ~ motorcycle to the
one horse shay was brought into use
as n vehicle of conveyance. Automo-
bile drivers made n good living for one
day at least. 1t was impossible to
reach the scene in an electric car.
These were creeping along an inch or
two at Il time and were loaded to the
gun wales. so to speak, with human be-
ings. They rode on the roofs. hung on
to the roof and stood on the open wind
Ow lodges on the tenders and in every
conceivable place. Because of the
heavy load some of the cars could hard
ly move and line was strung for a
long distance.
The fire trucks, built for all sorts
of weather and conditions. manned by
skillful chauffeurs, managed to get
down and back without a mishap
through the sea of mud.
There was plenty of water pressure
for all needs and several additional
lines could have been used had it been
necessary. The new water main has
not been finally connected but workmen
have been rushing the job through
daily.