Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1949-11-01
Continued From First Page.)

oCleFS tTedCcQ dL IIucl BclCy
Hospital were:
Aaron Trail, So, of 4808 Bat
terry lane, Bethesda, Md. build
ing superintendent for the Gen.
eral Services Administration.
A. p. Reporter Injured.
Robert harrington. IS, Of 4535
Thirty-fourth street South, Ar
lington. an Associated Press re-
porter. He suffered a lacerated
shoulder. He was injured when
ceiling plaster fell on him while
he was telephoning to his office
from a room on the seventh floor
of the Post Office Building.
Walter S. Davis, So, of 8512
Manchester road. Silver Spring. a
Government division chief. He
was still under examination at the
hospital.
Donald Huycke. Is. of 1885
Twelfth road south, Arlington, a
Government clerk.
10000 People Line Streets
Official climates of the damage
were unavailable. It was recalled
that a similar fire in 1885. soon
after construction Of the building
caused almost 100000 damage.
Police estimated that between
10000 and IS 900 people lined the
streets. Apparatus roared in from
all directions and firemen rushed
hose into the building and raised
ladders.
Traffic was tied up about IL
minutes until numerous policemen
shut off Pennsylvania avenue be-
tween Tenth and Fourteenth
streets.
Capital Transit cars and buses
and Washington. Maryland &
Annapolis Motor Lines and Alex
andria, Bancroft & Washington
Transit Co. buses were rerouted
from terminals at or near Penn
sylvania avenue and Twelfth
street. Seven A.. B. & w buses
unloading when the fire broke out
were held on Twelfth street be-
tween Constitution and Pennsyl-
vania avenues almost an hour.
Yard Uttered With Debris.
The grassy courtyard of the
Post Office Building was Uttered
with plate glass, pieces of desks
and papers. Some of the glass
was blown 200 feet.
Il was one of several people
walking across the open courtyard
when the blast came" a mail car
rier related. But no one was
hurt because we all got the hell
out of there"
At noon all department en-
ployes were officially dismissed for
the day.
Spectators on Pennsylvania
avenue saw the first sign Of the
fire when thin curls of smoke
seeped through a vent in the roof.
Before long the heavy white
clouds were billowing over a large
area Of the roof. particularly
the corner Of Pennsyl-
vania avenuet and Thirteenth
street. 4
Firemen said the blaze appar-
emily began in the transformer
room.
This was verified by Martin
Levy Of 1437 Montana avenue
NE, an attorney in the FEC law
department. Mr.. Levy was work
ing In an eighth floor Office when
he heard a series of rumblings"
and saw some flashes" The cor
ridors and Offices filled almost
Immediately with smoke on that
floor. Lights fickered and then
went out.
Mr.. Levy, thinking that the
blaze was confined to the section
that housed the transformer and
master switch system, walked
down to a seventh-f floor Office. All
other employees on the eighth floor
left their offices, but many did not
Immediately leave the building,
he said.
Elevators Operated for Time.
'Then there was an explosion
that shook the ears and felt like
an earthquake" he declared. THE
ceiling in that seventh floor Office
fell in. Plaster hit me on the
shoulder but I wasn't hurt and
got out by breaking a glass pane
in the door,"
Bernard StraSSburg, another
FEC employee, told reporters he
likewise felt the "deafening" ex-
plosion and was hit by falling
plaster. His hand was cut slightly
by flying glass. but he did not re-
Qu1re medical attention.
Though the lights went out al
most Immediately after the first
explosion, the elevators continued
to operate slowly for several min
utes. But most of the approx
fnately $500 people in the build
ing hurried down stairways to
safety.
The explosions were SO violent
that they not only hurled plaster
and glass. but also scattered pa
pers from upper windows. The
turmoil apparently caused thou
sands of FEC records to be blown
from the building or lost in the
excitement.
One of the first men rescued by
firemen was Mr.. Trail.