The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1928-08-28
KIee & Coleman Plant Fire
Requires Five Hours to
Exlinguish.

Fire swept the Klee S5 Coleman
ST., early today, causing loss of
approximately $4,000, and calling
into use practically all downtown
f1re-fighting equipment.
Dense clouds of smoke continued
to pour from the building after fire.
men had directed torrents of water
into the structure for five hours.
Eight f1remen were injured, They
were:
Lieutenant Landers, Company 8,
left wrist cut; Humphrey Williams,
Company l, left hand cut; James
Cox, Company 80, hand cut; Will
liam A. Hughes, Company 8, hand
cut; Glen Mendell, Company IL,
bruised; John r. Costello, Company
10, cash over right eye; Jack Fair
head, Company 10, hands cut; Will
liam L. Miller, Company 13, right
hand and fingers cut.
The majority of the injured fire
men were cut by broken bottles and
window glass.
Mendell, Costello and Fairhead
were carried from the first floor to
the basement when a boiler on the
third floor crashed through to the
basement.
Loss Set at $4,000
DR.. F. M. Fitch, assistant police
surgeon, and doctors on two city
ambulances, held at the scene for
emergencies, treated the injured
men. They insisted on staying at
work. however.
A. P. Klee, president of the COM
pany, said he believed the fire
started from electric wiring. He
estimated the damage at $4,000
all covered by insurance.
Klee said he was in the building
from 9 to $50 p. m. Monday, and
Chester Waldron, foreman, was in
the plant at 10:3O p. m. Neither
detected any trace of fire at that
time.
First alarm was sounded at 1913
a. m. Fred Kennedy, first assist
ant fire chief, and William T.
Clune, battalion chief, arrived with
the first equipment and found smoke
belching from every window in the
plant. Fire Chief Harry Voshell
took charge when the second alarm
brought additional equipment at
1881 a. m.
Three Story Structure
The plant is valued at $150,0O0,
Klee said. His son, Alfred klee, an,
daughter, Mrs. Hazel Mack, share
in the ownership of the company,
which also owns the building where
the plant has been in operation
forty years.
The building is three stories high
at the front, tapering to two stories
and then to one at the rear. 1t is
1876 feet long and 10 feet wide
Thousands of bottles and cases III
the front were destroyed and rec
ords in the Office damaged by fire
and water.
A fire wall prevented spread OF
the flames to the middle section
where valuable bottling machinery
was housed, and a second fire wall
safeguarded the one STORY portion
where ten trucks were stored. Fire
men removed the trucks undam-
aged.
First Fire in 80 Years
Second and third floors in the
front of the structure blazed and
collapsed, leaving the walls stand
ing.
Flames swept up through the
roof. The water tower from Engine
House IS was brought into play to
pour on water from above. Nine
other lines were laid by f1remen.
Details OF police formed fire lines
and blocked of S. Delaware St.
from South to Henry SITS.
Klee returned Monday from Hills
dale. Mich. where he had been re-
cuperating from an automobile acci-
dent.
This was the first fire the COM
pany has had for thirty years when
barns in the rear of the present
hIfiIdi1ae xIyera dAefroSyA3