DREADFUL SCENE AT A FIRE IN BIRMINGHAM.

Western Star, Issue 271, 16 November 1878, Page 1 (Supplement)

DREADFUL SCENE AT A FIRE IN BIRMINGHAM.

(From the Standard, August 26.) An alarming fire, attended with a loss of four lives, occurred in Digbetb, Birmingham, late on Monday. About twenty minutes to 11 o’clock, as visitors to the Museum Concert Hall were leaving, they observed smoke issuing from between the shutters of the shop of Mr J. Dennison, ccn- : fectioner, on the opposite side of the way, j and adjoining the premises of Messrs Mcr- ! rick and Harvey, oil mid color merchants, I at the corner of St. Martin’s lane, and imI mediately in the rear of St. Martin’s Church. I The premises consist of a shop with three floors above. An alarm was given to a policeman, and messengers were sent to the fire-engine-house and for the fire escapes. In the meantime (says the ‘Birmingham Post’) a soldier commenced pulling down the shutters, and attempts were also made to force an entrance into the shop. As soon as the windows were smashed the flames, which appeared to have full possession of the lower part of the premises, burst forth into the i street, reaching to the windows of the first | floor. The shop was closed about half-past 1 eight, and the inmates of the house—consist-

■ ing of Mr Dennison, his wife, his sister-in-law, one child (about four months old), and the servant—retired to rest shortly after ten. All efforts to rouse them were for some time fruitless, but at length Mr and Mrs Dennison appeared at one of the windows. Five ladders were speedily i obtained, and attempts were made to rescue i Mr and Mrs Dennison. Unfortunately they were too short to reach the window, but Mr Dennison managed to slide down on the top rung of one of them. Whilst he was descending the fire caught the lower portion of the ladder, and ho fell to the ground, but -was not injured. Mrs Dennison continued at the window shrieking for assistance, and immediately the escape arrived a number of willing volunteers ascended, amidst cheers from the crowd below, in the hope of rescuing the poor woman, who was holding her child in her arms. Police-constable E. Moore is stated to have been the first to reach the window.

! and caught the child which Mrs Dennison dropped into his arms. The flames were : now curling round the escape, and the heat ' i was intense. As Moore descended, holding | 1 the child with one hand, the poor little thing slipped from his grasp and fell. This unfortunate circumstance caused the most , painful excitement amongst the spectators, and for a moment it was believed that the child had fallen into the flames. This was happily not the case, but when picked up it was found to be so severely burnt that it was immediately taken to the Queen’s Hospital, and its recovery is regarded as hopeless. Mrs Dennison still remained at the window, and an attempt was again made to rescue her, several men ascending in rapid succession. The sacking of the escape,. however, at this moment caught fire at the upper end, and the brave fellows were compelled to descend, several of them being seriously burnt about the hands and arms. As the escape was now of no further service, it was withdrawn from the window. Mrs Dennison remained at the window for a short time, and appeared to be gradually overcome by the flames, which were rapidly reaching her. She sank upon the window-sill, in an apparently insensible condition, and slowly sliding forward fell,

amidst piercing shrieks, head foremost upon the pavement below. Mrs Dennison’s sister and the servant are stated to have been seen at the window, and to have fallen back suddenly into the flames. Their bodies, fearfully charred, were found at two o’clock yesterday morning in a bedroom at the back of the house. From the outbreak of the fire the flames spread rapidly, and whilst the attempts to save human life were being made the live had reached the upper floors of Messrs Meyrick and Harvey’s premises, Mr Dennison’s premises being already completely gutted. As the gunpowder and inflammable materials forming the stock of the firm were stored in the basement and ground floor, energetic efforts were made to prevent the fire from .communication with this portion of the building, which the firemen flooded with water. This course proved

successful, and the damage done to Messrs Meyvick’s premises by lire was wholly confined to the upper floor. The property adjoining Mr Dennison’s on the lower side escaped injury. Mr Dennison states that the fire originated through his servant lighting a match and throwing it carelessly aside in the shop, to which she had been sent for some article after the family had retired, Several members of the police force displayed great bravery in the endeavor to save the lives of the inmates of Mr Dennison’s house, and some were severely burnt while attempting to rescue them. Three men who also rendered assistance at the fire were subsequently treated at the Queen’s Hospital for injuries which they had received. The bodies of Mrs Dennison, her sister, and servant, were removed to the public mortuary in Moor street. Mrs Dennison’s infant died next day from its injuries, making the fourth death through the fire.