Article taken from Portsmouth Daily Times
Thursday, January 25, 1934
More than 80 were injured, two seriously, and lives of about 100 other worshippers were endangered when a floor in Holy Mission Pentecostal Church, 5400 Gallia Street, Sciotoville, collapsed about 8 p.m. wednesday.
Cracking in the center, the floor dropped in a V- shaped, hurling a mass of humanity 12 feet into the basment of the building.
John Stilltner, nine-year old son of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Stilltner, is in Portsmouth General Hospital, burned and injured so badly he may die.
The joists on the west side of the wall remained connected with the foundation and caused about two-thirds of the floor to drop in an angle from the center. About 10 feet of the east side of the floor crumbled and dropped straight down.
Hot Stove Adds To Danger
A drum coal stove was burning in the center of the room the Stilltner boy was caught under the stove and rescued by his mother.
Fire broke out adding another hazard to the entrapped congregation . Quick action of Sciotoville firemen less than 25 feet away, prevented a blaze the direction of the rescue resulted in removal of the class with a minimum of injuries.
Firemen drenched the room with water to prevent a bad fire. Ladders from the fire truck were lowered to the basement to assist the injured in flight from teh building.
Sciotoville fire station was converted into an emergency hospital. The emergency squad and all off-duty firemen and police were rushed to the scene to attend the injured. Serveral doctors and ambulances responded.
Many Children Present
Scores of children were gathered around the stove. Many persons were standing in the rear of the room and in a lone center aisle.
A platform at the rear of the room, about two feet above the floor level, was occupied by the choir of 23 and four ministers. The center of the floor dropped first. Those on the platform were hurled down on those who formed the congregation.
Those on the west side of the room slide into the basement, and many standing in the rear were pitched head first onto the mass of bodies. Wailing and screams prevailed when children and adults contacted the hot stove and bodies were trampled.
Human chains were formed to escape. Men, women and children climbed over one another to reach the street. Fire ladders were used by others. Mothers with babies in there arms were hysterical.
As the injured were removed from the basement, they were taken into the fire station for treatment. A detail of firemen were kept busy administering first aid.
The basement was vacated in about 10 minutes. Adults extricated themselves, while firemen carried out more than a score of children.
Warnings Unbeeded
Members of the congregation told firemen they heard cracking of wood about 10 minutes before the floor gave way. The choir had just finished "How Beautiful Heaven Is" and was singing the "Voice of Love" when the "bottom dropped out" of the church.
After all persons were removed from the building, the basement was (unreadable). Cooper called East End fire station for help. The noise was so deafening that East End firemen could not understand Cooper clearly but realized from the noise that help was needed and off-duty firemen.
The emergency squad was on the scene in 10 minutes under direction of Lieut. Frank Eastwood and lieut. Frank Eastwood and Lieut. Howard Kiebler. The injured were moved to the fire station for examination and attention. Ambulances stood by to rush serious injured to hospitals, but only two were found to need hospital attention.
Rent Was $5 A Month
Raymond Bowman said the building was rented at $5 a month to conduct a special revival service. The revival had been in progress nightly for three weeks. Wednesday was special service night. Ministers of other Pentecostal churches and the Sixth-street church choir participated.
Bowman admitted that city firemen warned against us of the building and predicted the floor would collapse. Chief Leedom said a state law provides that a church trustee who rents a building for church services without first having the building inspected is subject to a $500 fine.
The building was erected in 1867 by Scioto Fire Brick Co., and was used by that firm until 1917, when sold to Mrs. Retta R. Turley, 843 Second street. Several grocers and barbers used the building, west of Sciotoville fire station, in recent years.
Among firemen on the job were: Capt. Wiley Miller, Andrew Snyder, Louis Noel, Harry Kah, Ralph Thomas and Jackson Cooper.
Early Volunteers were Patrolman P.K. Porter, J.W. Jenkins, Press Bussy, H.C. Christenson, Ferrel Carmichael, Lawrence Riley, C. McNalley, H. McNally and Peter Long.