Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-09-28
Start Reconstruction
Plans At Barber Plant,
Wiped Out By Big Fire
Plans for Rebuilding Plant
Start While Fire is Still
Burning-Cleaning Up.

NO time IS Deing lost by the OFF,
cials of the Barber Asphalt plant,
which is in complete incendiary
ruin, in commencing the reconstruc-
ton. Today, with the ruins still
smouldering, and the entire site en-
veloped in a mantle of black smoke,
q small army of men are at work
removing the useless stretches of
track and cleaning up the debris in
the parts of the plant that are COM
pletely burned out with no danger
of breaking out again.
1t was learned unofficially today
that all the railroad ties and rails
available will be rushed to the place
Immediately to be built in the net
work of railway that will be essen
tial for the Immediate reconstruc-
tion. Engineers were at work yes
terday preparing the plans that will
be followed in laying down the
tracks. Many loads of lumber also
have already arrived at the plant
and more are expected during the
day.
There has been no official state
ment given as to the general plans
of rebuilding, but the large num-
ber of men at work, and the rushing
Of material to the spot lend evil
dence that the new plant will soon
be under way.
The fire is not yet completely out.
The Lincoln Fire Company is still
at work pumping water onto the
smouldering sections, which are
scattered in all parts Of the ground,
and occasionally there is burst of
flame that requires attention. The
company also has two of its engines
attached to the old pump which Is
The fire which totally destroyed
the asphalt refining plant of the
Barber Asphalt Paving Company
today looked like the ruins of the
Morgan, munition plant after the
explosion. With the exception of a
small structure known as the paw
ing department, there is not fac
tory building left that can be used.
The main office was saved and the
records were removed to sefety, but
the records in the several depart
ments were destroyed by the flames.
All that can now be seen of the
plant is a mass of twisted metal
and ashes that was once the stock
of the firm. Railroad tracks are in
every shape and form. In some
cases the heat caused the rails to
raise from the ground nearly three
feet. They shrunk so badly that
most of the joints were torn out of
ylace and the rivets ripped from
place. All the ties in the plant that
were in the heat of the fire are
burned from under the rails. Thou
sands of spikes lay on the ground.
while some were melted fast to the
steel track.
The oil and steam piping is scat
tered over the debris like a network
OF hose, and in mahy instances the
piping is melted into the steel work
OF the buildings. There is nothing
left of the main steam line from
the boiler room. The boiler rooms
are nothing but brick walls, while
the boilers are but useless pieces of
metal barely standing on the found
alton. The engine room is in the
same condition, except that one can
see the engines that once furnished
the power for the factory. The mo-
tors and big engines are scored and
melted so that it appears that they
are fit for nothing but junk.
The new roofing plant that was
to be opened for manufacturing of
prepared roofing material is con-
glomeration of twisted steel and
chared brick. The improved ma
chinery can be seen sticking a lit
tie above the ruins. They also are
in such a shape that they can not
be used again. This building was
heavily stocked with material TO
make roofing. IL furnished ready
fuel for the spreading flames.
The tank, where the fire started,
is spread out over the ground and
shows that it was in the middle of
the terrific heat. The brick work
on the outside of the other tanks
fell from the heat, and in many
cases the tank has partly fallen.
These asphalt containers look like
the craters of volcano that had
had an eruption, and the ground
about them appears like the after
effects of an eruption.
What is left of the box cars shows
that the heat must have been that
Of a melting furnace. Those that
had steel frame work stand while
those that were of wooden construc-
ton are totally demolished. The
/. trucks of these cars are ruined. The
rails raised in some cases so they
overturned the cars. There is moth
ing left that shows that these cars
ever contained any cargo, the same
having been burned.
The ground for the most part is
covered with asphalt that ran from
the burning tanks. In this way the
flames spread. making the task OF
the fremen more difficult. The COW
ering of paving material is hard
where the fire has burned out. 1t
seemed to flow over the ground
smoothly, and in time 1t will be SO
hard that much difficulty will be
experienced in removing 1t. Men
are at work digging up what they
can before it gets so hard that a
path cannot be made to walk on.
The heat from the fire late yester-
day kept most of the asphalt soft.