The New York herald., 1922-07-07
lnterborough, Transit Com
mission and Fire Marshal
Delve Into Cause.
NO HUMAN Is TO BLAME
One Result Will Be Better
Ventilation and Easier Exits
in Subway.

Mainly to find out IL such an acci-
dent as occurred In the Lexington ave-
nue. subway yesterday could easily
happen again. there were started last
night three serious Investigations OF
the short circuiting which terrified 400
persons and gassed many Of them
nauseously and painfully. These in
quiries are being conducted by the
Interborough itself. by the Transit
Commission and by the Fire Marshal
Conclusions and recommendations
await the investigation and detailed re-
port OF the Interborough and Transit
Commission engineers.
1t was agreed that no blame could
be put upon any living agency, since
short circuiting Of electrical apparatus
may come about through hundred
different causes without human re-
sponsibility. and that the emergency
use OF the fire extingushing chemical
known as Pyrene had little, If any,
thing, to do with the casing of
scores of persons.
Prompt Action Has Results.
The opinion was pretty definite among
persons who had made a real investi-
cation that II the fire In the motor botx
of the fifth car of the ten car train
had not been killed with this chemical
there would have been more poisonous
smoke from burning hard rubber in
sulation and the fusing of metal. The
situation called for no arrests. in the
opinion Of the responsible authorities.
and for no investigation OF criminal
nature.
The important thing was to get at
the cause of the short circuit II possi-
Bile and to ascertain IL any improve
ments can be made. not only In the
type Of electrical apparatus which now
controls subway trains but also in the
ventilation of the subway and in the
emergency exit: leading to the open air
1t Is probable that the accident and
the ensuing Inquiries will lead T. i'm
troll OF trains but in the ventilation OF
providing easier exit.
George McAneny. chairman of the
Transit Commission. with Commissioner
Leroy C.. Hardness and Robert Ridg-
way. chief engineer arrived a. Lex
ington avenue and Fifty-ninth street
within half an hour after the whole
system had gone dead. They went into
the fume filled tube. and with coats
off sought credible information.
Transit Commissfcn Statement.
Later they questioned employees OF
the Interborough. and then. upon the
basis of report from their engineers,
issued this statement:
To-day at li:i7 a. NJ. on a north
bound train of the Lexington ave-
nue limo the panel box on the fifth
car, containing the switches and
wires OF that car, was burned out
This was apparently caused by
short circuit. The fire was con-
fined to n space four or five feet
high by three or four feet wide, the
panel box being within steel con-
tainer. The flame burned through
the door of this container. but was
put out by a fire extinguisher. ac-
cording TO our reports. The car was
otherwise unintured.
Apparently the injury to paseen-
gers was caused by the smoke gen
Grated by burning rubber and the
fusing OF metals. possibly augmented
by the fumes from the chemicals OF
the fire extingulsher. This smoke,
more or less confined by the cir
cumstances. coupled with the fear
naturally engendered in the minds
of people forced to make their way
out of the cars and OF the subway
itself. through the emergency exits.
resulted in a number OF people be-
ing overcome.
The records show this accident to
be the first of It's kind in the SUBJ
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