Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 38, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1909 — Horrible Fire in Lake. [ARTICLE]

Horrible Fire in Lake.

The Seventy-first Str crib of the George W. Jackson Construction Co., burned Wednesday afternoon, kid ng and injuring scores of workmen. Forty-seven dead have been found and an equal number of injured were rescued. It is thought that about fifty may have been suffocated in the tunnel beneath the crib. The crib was used in the construction of a tunnel in Lake Michigan off Seventy-first St., Chicago. It Wiß a mile and a half out in the lake and the nearest boat that could re cue the men was over a nlle and a half away at the foot cf Six'y-eighth St. One of the workmen te ephened to the station on shore that the crib was afire and to send help at once. The fire had burned the wire in two before the message was half finished; but It was enough to get the aid as soon as possible. Capt. E. A. Johnson, of the tug T. T. Morford, stationed at S xtv-eighth St., was the first to see the fire. He sped full speed to the rescue. Men were struggling naked add half dressed in the icy water, clinging to floes and anything they could get hold of to keep from drowning. All were more or less severely injur d; one man had both of bis feet broken and another had one of his eyes tom from its socket. The rescuers worked until dark. By hat time all the dead and living that could be found were gathered up. Efforts to go down into the tunnel to see how many were killed, or if it was possible to rescue anyone, were futile because of the deadly gases that filled it Just how the fire started is not known. The crib was a wooden structure with no landing in the like. It was a station tor removing dirt from the tunnel under construction. The e was a large quantitty of dynamite stored in the crib. Reports are that there were either three hundred pounds or three tons. However, for some inexplainable reason the dynamite did not explode, but, Instead, burned like so much sawdust soaktd in sbme inflammable fluid. A coroner’s jury will be impane’ed at once to investigate the cause of the disaster and if possible fix the blame for the lack of protection to the workmen. As the bodies are so badly mangled that indentlfieation is impossible, it is thought that one large funeral will be held and the dead buried in a large lot in a cemetery.