The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-04-07

trapped occupants could be heard above the flames. Capt. James Me- Donald, Lieut.. Eugene Legge and Private John Reihl carried Mrs. Bradley and Miss Bradley down a ladder from their third-floor home.
 Five occupants of the top floor were taken down to safety by Sergt. Joseph Petit, Patrolman Clarence Marsella and Edward Kirby, the rescue being effected by placing a ladder on the roof of the one-story building adjoining and raising a ladder to the fourth floor.
 Boy Drops Safely
 Richard Greer, 13, was held out the fourth floor window by his mother. Mrs. Evan Greer, and his sister, Mona, 19, and finally drop ped. He fell to the roof of the one- story building but was uninjured Mrs. Greer, Mona and another daughter, Floretta, 16, were taken down a ladder to safety.
 Investigation by the fire marshal disclosed that the fire started in the second floor tenement on the west side, which was occupied by MT. and Mrs. Henry L. LApham, their sons, Woodrow, 1T, and Walter, 13, and three boarders.
 MT. Lapham was subjected to de- tailed questioning this morning and early this afternoon. He said that he and two men were sitting in a front room, while members of the family were out last night, and that he went to the kitchen. There, he said, he saw flames shooting from the wall near kerosene stove.
 Lapharn said he shouted an alarm and that he and his friends, and the occupants of the other second floor tenement, Mrs. Agnes Gauthier and family, ran downstairs to the street. The fire spread so fast, he said, that occupants of the third and fourth floors were trapped. l Aiding Fire Marshal l Aiding the fire fnashal in the probe of the blaze are Lieutenant Eugene Legge and Private Jerry Griffin. State Troopers Thomas Dunn and Edward Christian were on hand shortly after 8 o'clock this morning. They aided in the ques- tioning of occupants and made a detailed examination of the prem ises.
 Fire marshal Lahey said that the presence Of many kerosene and range oil drums and tins on the back porches and in Kitchens lad aided the rapid spread of the fire. The rear stairway was quickly burn ed through. The front stairway was burned partly through between the second and third floors and com- pletely destroyed between the third and fourth floors.
 One of Worst | Veteran firemen said that the blaze was one Of the worst in their experience. Time after time they thought they had the fire under control, only to see flames shoot high into the air from another part of the building.
 A freakish coincidence helped give the fire chance to spread and trap the occupants of the upper floors. A fire had broken out in a restaurant at 800 West Main street, Q short distance down the street, and six companies of firemen an. sWered the alarm. As the appara. tus raced by, occupants of the tei1e- ment house ran to their front win- dows. Meantime, their own build. ing was on fire, with the blaze roar ing up the rear of the building, then mushrooming off to the sides and front.
 Lawrence Petironelli, watchman at @ garage in the rear of the building, said he saw the flames shooting out but when he heard the fire engines he believed that the alarm has al- ready been rung in. Before he rea- lized that the apparatus was going to another fire, the whole back of the building was aflame.
 Several precious minutes were lost before firemen received the alarm. Soon all but two of the available pieces of apparatus in the city were at the scene. but the fire had such a head start that 1t was most diff cult to get 1t under control. | Smoke, Water Damage
 Smoke and water damaged the stock and equipment of two estab- lishments on the street floor, the Yankee Tire Shop, at 430 West Main street, and the Dunlop Tire O., at 434 West Main street. Cellars were filled with several fet Of water this morning.
 The building is owned by William McGrath, of Euclid avenue. Tax Commissioners John Kilduff and John Jenusaitis inspected the ruins this morning, since May 1 is the tax assessment date. They agreed that the building will have to be re- built.
 MT. Ford, who had been severely injured when struck by an auto- mobile last year, was apparently att tempting to make his way down the front stairs when he was overcome by the smoke and flames. He was found crouched on the landing.
 He had been a resident of Water bury for the past seven or eight years, coming here from Naugatuck. He was a former employe of the AmericAn Brass Co. The body was taken to the Mulville funeral home, 27O West Main street.
 Many civilians aided the flremep, some of them taking part in the rescues that thrilled the crowd of spectators. Mayor Vincent A. Scully