The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1922-02-01
TERRIBLE DISASTER
IN WASHINGTON
Snow Crushes Roof of Theatre Killing
One Hundred and Seven and
lnjuring One Hundred
and Three.

uHu uTcc.
Washington, Jan. 3O.-With a to-
tai OF one hundred and seven dead and
ed from ruins of the Knickerbocker
theatre early today, hundreds of res
cuers are still struggling with the
heavy wreckage left when snow-laden
roof of the structure collapsed Satur-
day night during the showing of a
feature comedy. Brigadier General
Bandholtz, who is in charge, said it
might be another twcnty-four hours
before the work can be completed. 1t
is believed, however, that the section
remaining to be explored would yield
few additions to the awful list of dead
ana injured. A party of rescuers is
still struggling to release unrcscued
victims fro mthe wreckage which is
now being overturned. One man is
believed to be still alive, although
imprisoned for thirty-six hours.
The burial Of two of the victims of
the disaster, John and Elizabeth JEFF
fries, rhildren of L. E. Jeffries, gen
efal counsel of Southern Railway,
will take place Wednesday at their
old home in Selma, Ala, it is said,
vestigation, Senator Capper introduc-
ed a resolution calling for an inquiry
by the senate. Civilian relieved SOL
dicrs and marines who had been on
guard at the scene since the disaster
occurred. Only odds and ends of de-
bris remains to be removed and no
more bodies are expected to be re-
| covered.
Washington, Jan. 20 (By the AS
sociated Press The toll of dead in
the, Knickerbockcr reached lot to-
| night when final canvass was made
of the city hospitals and all of the
several emergency medical stations
which had been established to care
for the victims. This was said to in
clude everybody thus far recovered
from the ruins. The list Of injured
totalled 1874 tonight and of these ID
were recorded as having sustained
serious hurts.
or those in hospitals some sustain
ca injuries IN many cases of such
character that the victims, if they re-
cover, will be manned for life.
Ninety-two of the victims had been
identified when the force of volunteer
workers, I'd hours after the disaster,
approached the end of their long
search of the debris.
Nine additional bodies of those
who had succumbcd to injuries after
rescue lay in city hospitals.
Normally the theatcr has every
seat filled at that hour and nearly
1000 persons was it's capacity. The
same unprecedented snowfall which
brought death to the vcnturesome few
kept the many at home. Street car
| traffic had been abandoned and streets
| and sidewalks were all but impossible
with drifts.
The building stands in an acute
angled corner at Eighteenth street
and Columbia road, northwest, the
heart of the most favored residence
section of the city. The narrow
niche of the stage on which the
screen. was hung was backed into the
corner angle, while to the left from
the, stage the line Of the auditorium
wall runs in a straight line for some
200 feet down 18th street. TO the
right, the wall follows the slow curve
Of Columbia road for about the same
distance and at the far end, paralling
the stage front, the back wall com
about 200 feet in length.
Most of the bodies were recover
ed from the floor of the pit beneath
the wrcckagc Of the balcony or from
the front of the balcony itself Fol-
lowing the rule of motion picture au-
dicnccs and with an almost empty
house to pick from, those on the main
floor had grouped themselves in the
rows of seats just below the front
Of the balcony. They were back far
enough to see well and the front and
back rows were almost empty.
At the point they had chosen, the
danger proved to be just double.
Few of those seated there could have
escaped. Even the falling concrete
slabs Of the balcony front came down
on the first wreckage with crushing
weight. The cleaning brass rail that
adorned the balcony front lay spread
over the wrcckage of the roof Is feet
below when rescuers reached the
Lscene.
Those farther back on the main
floor probably all escaped. The beams
that supported the back of the bal
ccony did not let 60 their clutch on
4 the wall. The wide scope of seats
they supported tilted down until the
wreckage below took the weight of
of the front end and then stood cover
ing the back rows of the main floor
like tent.
The front rows of the, balcony
were ground to twisted mass Of
ruins in the fall. There was no wood
in the structure. 1t was all steel and
concrete but the enormous weight Of
the balcony in itself was sufficient to
wind the tortured beams if7to fantas-
tic shape.
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