Rekindles: June 2003

June 2, 1903: BROOKLYN, NY - An exploding kerosene oil stove ignited the clothes of a woman cooking in her kitchen as her child slept in a nearby room. With her clothing in flames she ran from the kitchen, leaving a trail of fire behind her. A neighbor, hearing the woman's screams, rushed to her aid and was quickly engulfed in flames herself. Other neighbors responded and were able to extinguish the burning clothing as the firemen arrived. Both women, however, were critically burned.

June 3, 1903: BRONX, NY - Firemen responded to a blazing storehouse in the New York Central train yards. With strong winds pushing flames across the tracks a train engineer, trapped inside his locomotive, ran his train directly through a wall of flames, saving his crew and his train. Firemen were then faced with flames closing in a tanks of naphtha and struggled valiantly to protect the vessels. The fire was held to the building of origin.

June 4, 1903: LONG ISLAND, NY - Local fire companies were faced with large wildland fires that swept along the western shore of Lake Ronkonkoma. Several buildings were lost as the flames were pushed through the pine trees and thick brush. Firemen then battled a fire in a vacant factory that was set ablaze by flaming embers. On the same day, firemen in the New Jersey communities of Belvidere, Dover, Jamesburg, Mount Holly, Red Bank and Vineland faced similar fire situations as flames raced through huge pine preserves.

June 6, 1903: RANDSBURG, CA - Word was transmitted to Bakersfield that the entire town of Randsburg was destroyed by a devastating fire. High desert winds blew the flames into blowtorch conditions. The town had no fire protection of its own and the flames were out of control before help could arrive.

June 7, 1903: BUFFALO, NY - Firefighters battled a huge warehouse blaze in the Buffalo Carting and Storage Company's plant. Filled with stored railroad goods the fire was well advanced as fire crews arrived. The damage was estimated at near a half-million dollars.

June 9, 1903: PALM BEACH, FL - A fire destroyed the Breakers Hotel and a nearby casino, along with several commercial buildings including a powerhouse. Firemen faced extending flames fed by sea breezes and fueled by the wooden structures.

June 16, 1903: RICHMOND, VA - The Walter Green Newman mansion, in Somerset, was the site of an early-morning fire and was destroyed. One of the most lavishly decorated homes in the state, the structure burned to the ground, fueled by expensive antiques and furnishings.

Time Capsule

JUNE 1, 1903: FIRE IN NEW YORK CITY COMMERCIAL BUILDING FIRE FELLS FIREMEN

Three firemen were overcome during a fire in a five-story brick commercial building on Reade Street in Manhattan. The blaze started in the cellar of the Merchants Rubber Company and three alarms were quickly transmitted. The burning rubber goods in the cellar produced dense, noxious smoke, causing difficult conditions for firemen working in the cellar and first floor. One fireman from Ladder 8 was dragged out unconscious by his comrades and was transported to the hospital. A member of Engine 29 was dragged out unconscious, but was revived by a department doctor and went back to work. A rookie fireman, Hugh Bonner Jr., son of the former chief of department, was nearly overcome and was helped from the smoke-filled structure. After several breaths of oxygen, he again plunged into the smoke.

Paul Hashagen, a Firehouse® contributing editor, recently retired as an FDNY firefighter assigned to Rescue Company 1 in Manhattan. He is also an ex-chief of the Freeport, NY, Fire Department. Hashagen is the author of FDNY 1865-2000: Millennium Book, a history of the New York City Fire Department, and other fire service history books.