Evening star., 1934-05-20
S10,0)O,0DO BLAZE
SWEEPS CHICAGO
AZ Blocks Razed in Stock. .
yards Area-5O0 Injured.
1900 Left Homeless.
Continued From First paee.)

But that was only one element In q
drama as huge and stark as Chicago
has witnessed recently. Bankers looked
sorrowfully at vaults that turned into
glowing singed hulks, but they be-
lieved no currency had been lost.
Executives feared the destruction of
the live stock exchange. nerve center
Of the local hub of the industry, would
hamper the packing business through
out the country for the next few weeks,
~ loss of records and drafts would
throw them out Of normal operation
Heroism arose from the sulphuric
scene as f1remen and civilians climbed
extension ladders and held nets to
rescue persons stranded on the roofs
Of fiame-enveloped buildings. Scores of
tales of individual bravery were re-
lated.
Firemen Are Hampered
Firemen were hindered in their ef-
forts to curb the progress of the flames
by the fact that many streets into the
area are blocked off by railroad tracks.
The only through street east of the
point where the conflagration started
was Hslstesd street, almost q mile
away 1t was there tha the fire fight
ers dug in" and fought. Engines and
bumpers we're hooked on every avail
able water plug for blocks in that di-
rection. The streets were rivers of
water after an hour of fighting.
The district. famous over the world
for its thriving industry. was sorry
spectacle of ruin tonight Thousands
Of people thronged railroad embank-
ments, bridges, tops of nearby build
tngS and even stood in the streams Of
water to watch the finale of the strus-
Gle of the firemen.
The stockyards area is in the
heart Of the south side. 1t is located
between Halsted and Ashland streets
miles south of the Loop, extending
from Thirty ninth TO Forty-seventh
streets. It is virtually a separate ur-
han entity. Almost 4 miles to the
east is located the grounds of the Cen
tury of Progress Exposition on the
lake front.
Phone Opera tors Remain.
Chief among heroes and heroines
we're telephone company employees.
who stuck at their posts through the
thick Of the battle. During the worst
of the blaze the yards exchange office
caught fire giving rise to reports that
the building was destroyed.
The crew of 100 operators ct the
exchange, lungs clogged with smoke
and eyes smarting, carried on at one
time with only two trunk lines
working.
The Red Cross set up headquarters
IN the stricken zone to care for the
homeless and the Illinois National
Guard turned over its srmories to be
used as dormitories. The War De-
partment was asked TO release cots
for the homeless.
DR. Herman NJ Bundesen, head Of
the Chicago Board of Health, sent
Subordinates to cooperate with Red
Cross oflicisls.
while Gov Henry Horner proffered
the aid Of the National Guard, Mayor
Edward J, Kelly said he did not be-
lieve 1t necessary to call out the
militia. The mayor, however. ordered
500 patrolmen to the area. -Four
men were arrested as 1ooters
BY lights OF electric and gas
torches searchers trsmped the ruins
late at night and into the early hours
In hopes Of finding those reported
missing
The Middle West IS drought Of more
than a month, which has been sllevi
sted here by only occasional minor
showers. was blamed for the rapid
spread of the flames. Every day, al
most. has its fire in the yards area,
but the f1re-nghting personnel there
Is so efficient that only a few ever
reach the stage of newspaper notice.
Today the wooden buildings were
fire tinder after two days OF excessive
heat The circumstance which gave
the famous fire of 1871 its great start
a long dry spell-offered another
opportunity for even more widespread
damage but modern fire-t1shting ap-
paratus and methods finally swung
the victory where nineteenth-century
equipment failed.
While reports were current that
railroads planned an embargo upon
shipments of live stock into Chicago,
railroad officials contacted said no
such step had been taken as yet.
The Northwestern road reported
that it was receiving shipments of
live stock ~ usual for delivery here.
Other roads said stock en- route would
be cared for adequately.
Large Buildings Rased.
Large structures reduced TO ruins in
clUded:
The Percheron Society of America
Hall
The Livestock Exchange Building.
housing many administrative of1ces.
The huge Stock Yards Amphi-
theater.
The Drovers' National Bank.
The Stock Yards Inn.
The Manhattan Brewery.
The Stock Yards National Bank.
The p. Brennan Packing Co.
The Drovers' Journal Building
The Chicago Junction Railroad
Offices
The yards exchange of the Illinois
Bell Telephone Co.
The Equipment Corporation ware
house.
Girl opera tors and male hnemen of
the phone exchange remained hero
tcally at their posts until fumes.
sparks. embers and smoke drove them
saspins from their burning Office
Two fire engines were consumed and
abandoned by their struggling crews in
the path of the blaze.
The huge hay barn of the Union
Stock Yards & Transit Co.. located in
the heart of the mile square packing
area, became ignited late in the after
noon from what authorities believed
was q carelessly discarded cigarette.
The tongues Of FIRE lesped to other
sheds and Enclosures in the congested
district. feeding rapidly on the wooden
forms dried from weeks of rainless
weather.
As darkness began to close in, the
fire-fiehters planted explosives to halt
the rush of the flames. borne along by
a brisk southwest wind. Their fren-
ned efforts met with little appreciable
success. for At $50 p.m Central stand.
ard time, the large Swift d Co.. ONCE
building was reported to have been
abandoned as lost.