Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-16


lowed Immediately by pillows Of amber
colored smoke-the deadly fumes, which
settled in the pores of the building and
whirled from the windows, overcoming
even those in the streets.
j. H. Donahey. Cleveland newspaper
cartoonist, was driving past the build =
ing at the instant the first detonaticn
occurred. FLAMES shot from the two
lower rear windows on the East Ninety
third street side of the building" Dona-
hey said. "a thick, dense and yellow
smoke poured from the building so
heavy that it obliterated the surround
ings and from some of the windows
there came a deep, brown smoke, too
heavy for that caused by the burning
wood.
Victims Inside Cry for Help.
"Men and women looking more like
shadows through the dense smoke were
clinging to the windows, shouting and
gesticulating for help.
1.-THE ladders placed against the build
ing did not reach the top. Some sue
ceeded in reaching the ladders and 9th.
ers jumped to nets below. AS the fire.
men and volunteers were working fever
ishly to bring ladders and nets to
those on the roof and in the two top
stories, another explosion occurred,
causing the strong brick walls to totter
and tremble Some were carried out on
the shoulders of firemen. Their faces
were partly yellow, as from the fumes
of deadly gases"
Few inside the building lived to re-
member what happened. DR.. Henry j.
John, diabetic specialist of the clinic,
stood in a hallway when the second
blast came, however, and ran through
the building as the clouds of smoke
settled through the foyers and examin-
ing rooms.
"Soft Boom" Heralds Death.
He was in his office at the time OF
the first explosion. There was sort
Of soft BOOM" DR.. John said. There
was quite bit of conclusion but very
little noise. Smoke began to curl up
around the radiator pipes almost i'm
mediately. It was yellowish brown
gas and smelled like bromide. 1t was a
horrible odor.
"I got out into the hallway Even
then the flames were such that 1t was
impossible to attempt any rescue work
from our side. Then the second blast
came I ran through the rear door.
Almost Immediately the building seemed
to be enveloped in flames"
Joseph Stahl, undergoing an exami-
nation at the clinic at the time of the
explosion, escaped through the flame
and fumes, but bis wife, who waited
for him in an anteroom, died Of the
gas after he had sought her in the
confusion following the blast.
Fights Way to Outside.
ct had just had my examination"
said Stahl, when the explosion came.
The building rocked and smoke began
to pour into the doors. I fought
through the flames coming through the
door to the hallway as the nurse ran
screaming through another door.
don't know where she went"
II thought of my wife. but didn't
know which way to go. The confusion
was terrible.
It managed to fight my way through
into the open air."
CHASTITY Smudge Spots Building.
A CHASTITY yellow smudge today had
settled on the walls, the sheets of cots,
on blanks once white which lay on
doctors desks. the windows. Every
where in the interior of the building
was the yellowish blot left by the deadly
gas which enveloped its victims and
left them choking, screaming and fight
ing for air.
Many persons were sitting in the
dental room near the elevator waiting
for their appointments when the yei-'
low clouds Of poison came billowing to-
ward them. 1t came. perhaps while
they wondered what was wrong. and
then before they knew it they were
choking from the deadly fumes.
They clutched their Threats and
gasped for air. but there was only the
suffocating odor. Fighting, screaming,
they reeled and pounded on the eleVa-
tor door. But there was no one to
answer their call.
Beat and Kicked at Door.
Their bodies were found piled against
the elevator door. AS If mad, they had
beaten and kicked at the door. The
glass Of the slide guarding the shaft
had been partly broken, seemingly In
the vain hope that there might be air
in the shaft. Firemen who carried
their bodies out discovered them pitched
toward the elevator door, many of them
having died in commissions. helpless to
escape from the yellow gas which
shrouded them.
Others-16 of them-got as far as
the landing on the third floor before |
they met the wall of fumes which |
Seeped into every corner of the build |
ing. Firemen found them, too, Sprawled |
in grotesque positions and carried |
them out, some Of them over the roof |
Stairs Uttered With Clothing.
The stairs were Uttered with womens |
hats and shoes. There was glove. too,
and q coat which some one had wrap
ped around his head in an effort to
escape. The heel marks of woman's |
shoe were on the elevator door.
Many Of the gassed, who physicians
said experienced similar conditions to
gas attacks in the World War, were
carried out alive, only to die when the
ficially administered at hospitals failed
to rid their lungs of the poison fumes.
Turn Green on Reaching Air.
"Believe it or not" said Frank Kill
rain. one of the scores who worked in
cessantly carrying victims throughout
the afternoon, "as soon as they hit the
air they turned green"
The clock in the main room stopped
at 1881 am, six minutes after the
deadly yellow mist Sifted through the
building. Two hours later every person
had been removed and only the sweet, |
,ickening odor of burning celluloid, the
yellow-smudged furnishings and fire.
men making ceaSeless rounds remained
inside.
Rushed to Oxygen Supplies.
Battalion Fire Chief James p. Flynn.
with his driver, Louis Hiltepbraid, were
he first to enter the building They
-eached the roof and chopped q hole
eading to q stairway, then dropped a
adder to the fourth floor landing. Be
ow they found the Is bodies.
Ambulances and taxicabs were used
% take the sufferers 10 hospitals. DR..
George w. Grille. head of the clinic,
,oua nrrarc that al Victims ia ia kay, m ]