The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1928-01-24
Spectacular DOzO71tO1Un Fire
PerilS Scores on Upper Floor
of Motor Inn; Panic A Uerted
Firemen'S Warning Keeps
Office Workers From
Leaping to Death.

jump from the windows added thrills
to a blaze which caused damage of
several thousand dollars to the
Circle Motor Inn, Monument Circle
at w. Market ST., this morning.
Four autos were damaged by the
flames, which broke out in an oil
pit on the sixth floor from sparks
from an acetylene torch a few
minutes after 10 o'clock.
Two firemen were hurt fighting
the blaze.
When the smoke from the burning
oil and grease spread through the
building and poured out the sixth
floor windows in great clouds, girls
and men in the office on the sixth,
seventh, eighth and ninth floors
crowded to the windows facing on
the Circle and Market st.
Firemen and hundreds of
spectators shouted to them not to
jump.
Firemen spread life nets on the
Market st. side of the building,
fearing some would ignore the
warnings and leap to death on the
pavement.
Negro Carried to Safety
Spectators throngi,ie the Circle
and Market st. and surrounding
buildings cheered wildly as Fireman
James Cox of Truck Company 80
rescued Dennis Moore, 25, Negro, 436
Toledo ST., from a seventh floor
| window.
Moore, a Motor Inn Employe, on
/ the sixth floor when oil in the grease
pit exploded, was nearly overcome
by the fumes, but fought his way to
/ a seventh floor window.
Firemen shouted for him not to
jump as he leaned out on the win
dow ledge in the smoke.
Cox mounted an aerial extern
sion ladder and helped him to the
! ground, while other firemen held
life net in case either should fall.
j. S. Fogelman, 524 S. Fleming
St., welder, said the fire started
from sparks from an acetylene
torch with which he was cutting
angle iron for a railing.
Sparks Start Blaze
The molten iron sparks, he said,
fell from the top of the pit OH
which cars are run for greaSing or
changes of oil, onto an oil~soaked
wooden plank on which employees
walk underneath the machines.
Around the floor of the pit, which
is on the fifth floor level, $50 GAL
Ions of motor oil and twenty bar
rels of grease were stored against
reinforced concrete walls enclosing
the pit.
POLICEMAN said he did not notice
the sparks until a garage employe
pointed out the wood was aflame.
Explosion Follows
Several employees working on the
same floor grabbed fire extinguish-
ers and attempted to quench the
flames, but the blaze reached some
Of the oil and an explosion resulted.
With only water to work with at
first, f1remen we're able to do little
with the burning oil, spread about
by the explosion. AS soon as chem
icals were obtained, however, the
blaze rapidly was controlled.
Following a gas line, the flames
spread to the sevent floor, but did
little damage.
Fireman Vernon Hudson of head
quarters company No. Z, was in
jured by a chemical truck driven
up into the garage. 1t Skidded ana
crushed his foot against the side
of runway.
Attempting to pour chemicals into
the oil pit, Lieut.. D. Milender
scorched his face. Both injured men
were taken to city hospital
F. d. Ewing, assistant manager of
the Motor Inn, and Bon Aspy, local
representative of the Metropolitan
Casualty and Insurance Company,
said total damage would be about
$4,000.
All damage is covered by in
surance, the Inn officials said.
Keep Auto Owners Out
About $50 cars were in the ga
rage, according to Ewing.
Police and garage employees had
difficulty in preventing car owners
who flocked to the street floor of the
garage from going in for their ma
chimes.
The cars damaged by the flames
and smoke belonged to Ward B.
Hiner Of the Red Ball Transit Com
pany; Nellie Allison, Mooresville;
N. j. Buell., 3739 E. Market ST., and
the Chevrolet Motor Car Company.
They were on the sixth floor.
Girls on the seventh floor descend
ed a short ladder to the roof of
the Indianapolis Power and Light
Company building to safety.
H. Daugherty, 1925 Ashland Ave,
elevator operator, was one of the
heroes Of the fire.
One Girl Faints
Although he admitted he was
scared sthf," Daugherty braved
the smoke which filled the elevator
shaft and made number of trips
carrying employees from the upper
floors to safety and tiremen up to
the scene of action.
Miss Marion Reisnider, Y. w. G.
A., tainted on the seventh floor
when she learned the building was
afire.
The smoke cut off access to the
fire escape, which is inside the
building. The elevators and regular
stairways, however, were so acces-
sible that this did not endanger
any one.