Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-03-08
FIGHT
FLAMES UNDER
FALLING WALLS
Scores Have Narrow Escapes
as Brick Walls Collapse
During Terrific Blaze
HEROIC WORK DONE
Buildings in Neighborhood
Threatened-AII Compan-
les Are Called

The volunteer f1remen of Perth
! Amboy showed their bravery, dogged
| determination and grit at the fire
| which early this morning threatened
to destroy not only the entire block
bounded by Maple, Jefferson and
Fayette streets and the Central rail-
( road tracks, but houses Immediately
across the street from the blaze.
Those who were attracted to the fire
lby the sounding of the "three-threes"
the call for every available piece
of apparatus, every inch of hose and
every fireman in the city-or by the
glare which lit up the sky were of
| the opinion that not only the large
building in which the fire originated,
| but other places as well were doom
| ed.
Despite the threatening walls,
some thirty-five feet in height which
| bulged out as a result of the roaring
furnace within and the cracking of
| the bricks as the water struck them
and turned to steam, the firemen
continued to play streams on the
| blaze at dangerously close quarters.
| Not until one of the walls was seen
to topple over would the firemen for
sake their duty and then they would
rush back and clear their lines of
| hose from beneath the debris of
| stone, plaster and charred timbers,
Immediately resuming their efforts
to check the flames.
| When the front walls Of the build
| ing first collapsed bricks were
| thrown far across the street, some
landing in the vacant lot on the cor
ner of Jefferson and Maple streets.
| Several firemen who were danger
ously close to the building had mar
row escapes from being struck by
the falling walls.
The dense clouds Of smoke and
steam rising from the burning build
ing made it difficult for the firemen
to see whether or not the walls were
about to fall. This screen of smoke
and steam between the firemen and
the fire was a menace to the safety
| of the firefghters but the men gave
| little thought of what might happen
and continued to run lines of hose up
| to a point within fifteen or twenty
feet of the bulging walls.
The blaze was not confined to one
lportion of the building but consumed
the entire interior, the fire having no
difficulty in burning through the thin
walls from one room to another.
The blaze had a big start before it
was discovered and as soon as the
chief arrived he saw the manner in
which the fire was spreading and had
the 1858" alarm turned in. Lines
of hose were run to the flaming
building from all directions, all
hydrants within a block of the fire
being utilized.
The first impressions one received
| upon arriving at the scene of the fire
were that the small structure of the
| Building Trades Association. idjoin-
ing the building on the north, would
| be consumed and that the new home
| of the Dorsey Motors Company
| would then catch fire. Realizing the
danger, many of the cars on display
| and stored in the garage, were re-
moved by employees, police and will
ing helpers. The Donnell Lumber
Company's yard looked doomed but
| a favorable west wind kept the
flames and heat Of the fire from the
| thousands of feet of lumber which
lay stored in the yard ans sheds
within fifty feet of the burning fac
tory and store building.
i The residences on the east side OF
Maple street, directly across from
the burning building, were carefully
watched by the firemen who wetted
them down from time to time in Or
der to prevent their catching fire. II
looked during the first half hour o.
the fire as though these buildings
and others would catch fire from the
flying emberS, some of which were
three or four inches long.
The presence of snow upon the
roof of many buildings not having
slate or fireproof roofing material
prevented other fires being started
by the flying sparks.
A telegraph pole alongside the
building on the Jefferson street side
was splintered about three feet from
the ground when part of the wall, in
front of the building was badly bat
tered by the collapse of the front
wall.
\ The tangled web of wires of all de-
scriptions lying under and on tor
of the lines of hose made it difficult
for the f1remen to work. Word was
| passed among the f1remen that some
of the fallen wires were "live wires
and this resulted in caution being
taken in removing them so that the
) hose might be free from the tangled
mass Of wires, mortar, bricks. bits
of machinery and charred wood
Lines of hose were punctured By
falling masses of brick on seyera
occasions, geysers spouting up from
the holes in the hose until clamps
were placed over the openings.
The firemen realized from the very
start that 1t would be impossible to
save the building but several streams
Of water were played into the roar
ing inferno continuously, clouds OF
steam rising as the water touched
the burning woodwork. or hot iron
machines. Realizing the Importance
of preventing the flames from
spreading to the lumber yard and
to the building trades and Dorsey
buildings. several companies took
their stand in the rear Of the build
ing and on the north side, first wet
ting down the buildings and prop.
erty in the immediate vicinity and
then playing streams upon the blaze
The fire had eaten its way
through the roof by the time the
firemen arrived in response to the
first call from box %, and as the
heat of the blaze broke windows In
; the front and rear of the building
, a draught was caused which whip-
ped the flames through the entire
structure, tongues of fire spoutins
from the windows and shooting up
through the roof.
: AS the floors and partitions burc-
ed like cardboard. the machines
; used in the factory could be seen tu
crash through to the ground floor
Good Fried is better than gold. And
. making friends with the money saving