两种典型火灾。
为了说明火灾和随之而来的财产破坏的原因，可以描述一下最近发生的两起火灾，每起火灾都有其自身的道德意义。一个是在田纳西州的孟菲斯。他住在一栋六层的砖砌建筑里，当时这里是一家批发杂货店。大火发生在顶楼，当消防队员到达时，他们带着两根水管上到那层楼，并将它们与竖管连接起来。里拉本身并没有什么特别之处，在通常的条件下，它应该是很容易熄灭的。然而，结果是，由于某种原因，立管顶部的阀门让Teen打开了，因此只有一个非常微弱的压力。然后，消防队员被迫断开连接，下来并从消防栓保护他们的溪流。这不是他们的责任，这一延误使火焰迅速蔓延，令人吃惊的是，火势迅速蔓延到较低的楼层。原因就在顶层的其中一层。电梯附近装了大量的鞭炮、弹药筒等小型炸药。 When the fire reached these, pieces of paper were sent burning in all directions. The burning cases of the cartridges were shot out on the floors through the opening of the elevator, and in turn started scores of smaller fires along the lower floors After burning for some time, the building in which the fire originated collapsed and damaged adjacent buildings, thereby almost doubling the loss. Part of the damage to nearby property was due to the fire spreading from the first building. The loss was $350,000. The extent of the fire was apparently due to the standpipe in the building not being in proper condition for instant use, which caused a costly delay in getting water on the flames; also to the unprotected communication between the floors and the collapse of the building in which the fire started. The other fire was in a drug warehouse at Dallas, Tex. The building was new and of brick, five-story and basement, of “mill” construction. The elevator and stairway were in a brick shaft, with automatic rolling shutters. The fire started in the basement and was discovered by an employe. Its cause was carbon bisulphide vapors, which had probably been ignited by a spark from a box of bottles, which fell from the fifth floor to the basement, or from shoe nails striking the cement floor of the basement. The Grinned automatic sprinkler happened to operate successfully, the water supplies being a 4,500-gallon pressure-tank, a 20,000-gallon gravity tank and a steamer connection. Of the 227 sprinklers in the basement seventy opened, and a steamer was connected to the system for about half an hour after the fire started. The vapor from the carbon bisulphide, when it ignited, gave off an exceedingly pungent gas, which drove all the employes from the basement. The speed and intense heat with which this liquid burns caused seventy sprinklers to open at once, and operated the automatic doors on the elevator shaft in the basement. There was practically no loss by actual fire, the only indications of a fire being a few slightly scorched barrels, the other part of the damage being due to water. The loss was about $10,000, and was due chiefly to water. The small fire loss was due to the prompt operation of the automatic sprinklers; the excessive water damage, to the nature of the fire.
