New Britain herald., 1922-02-27
SIO,000 BLAZE IN
 CITY HALL BUILDING
(Continued From Flrst Pagc)

before it was removed and it Is pos sibe that part of the office records will not be of further use, ... ... The common council chamber, next to the school committee offices was not damaged in any respect. The municipal home service bureau, ad- joining the office of Mayor o, F. Cur ts, was likewise not affected, Misa Gertrude Conroy, secretary of the municipal bureau. and Miss Esther MacArthur, secretary of the home service section of the American Red Cross, left their desks for safety, how ever.
 City Employees Flee.
 The engineering staff of the board of public works, located on the fourth floor, packed up q number of val uable maps and equipment prepara tory to removing them to the street in the event that the fire became un- controllable. Records of the charity department were taken from the of flee by Supt. William Cowlshaw and his clerical staff, when their offices became filled with smoke, l.essors of private offices took valuablcs out into the hall so that they might be ready to take ont Of the building should such course be deemed ad- visnbie.
 In the New Britain club. several Of those having sleeping quarters packed their belongings to take away. while cooks, walters and maids donned street clothes in hurried fashion.
 Aerial Truck Used.
 Upon the arrival of the fire depart ment, Chief Noble ordered the aerial ladders hosted at once, affording added means of ingress and egress to and from the club rooms A line of hose was laid over the roof on the fourth floor The water was directed down through a skylight into the burning crater beneath. In a matter of seconds the ceiling gave away due to the force of water and the dining hall began to fill with water, Before many minutes had passed the water was ankle deep, covering costly car pets and drenching table linen and furniture. Much of the silverware was ldkPn lToIll tllr It'll " c PiH'' of safety by Janitor Edward Ryan
 Much of the weakened ceiling was chopped away 10 allow the water to come through and afford channel through which the fire might be reached, After battling the flames for about three-auarters of an hour, the recall was sent in. 'The fire had been confined to the garret, but the entire west end of the building suf- fercd the effects of a water soaking.
 Wilson's Loss s1,0O0.
 Although two floors beneath the scene of the actual fire, the Wilson company store suffered the effects of water, which had seeped down through the club floor and the may or's office. The damage through wa ter is estimated at the Wilson store, at s1,000.
 Tcday's fire while it is the most serious that the city building has eX- perienced, is but one Of more than a dozen that have broken out dur ing the last few years. On only two occasions the fire department was called out Employees of the club say that the conditions of electric wires has been responsible for the many outbreaks. The spot at which today's fire is supposed to have started IS about IS feet, on straight line, from the desk occupied by Electric Inspec- tor George Cooley.
 Mayor Without Office. It is not expected that the dining hall will be ready for occupancy TOT several days at least. For equally as long a time Mayor Curtis and the school committee will be obliged to occupy temporary quarters.
 Although the roof overhead was , blazing furnace, and firemen and po- lice had gone through the offices or dering everyone out Of the buidinlg except those who had business in con- nection with the fire, such as police, firemen, building and city officials and reporters, not for an instant did the building elevator cease operations. William B. Wilbur, the veteran ele- vator operator, stuck to his post, and continued taking frightened clerks out of the building as fast as he could, taking fire fighters up to the scene of the fire on his return trip. Every trip the elevator made, 1t went through a cloud of smoke, on the third floor, but when all was over and occupants of offices were moving back. MT. Wilbur was still at his post and the elevator was operating as l