Aurora Fire Dept. Honors Lives Lost On 83rd Anniversary Of Blaze

AURORA, IL — Firefighters held a ceremony Thursday to honor three of their own who died 83 years ago to the day. Captain Herbert Reiss, 37, Captain John Petersohn, 48 and Firefighter Charles Hoffman, 35, were members of company No. 4 and 5 who answered their last alarm at the Woolworth 5 & 10 April 11, 1934. An exterior wall collapsed over them at the store, located at modern-day 19-21 Broadway Street.

According to a Facebook post from the Aurora Fire Department, the alarm was issued at “11:30 o’clock” when many citizens noticed flames and smoke coming from the three story structure.

Every member of the Fire Department responded. At the time, new gas masks were used to help fight the blaze. Nearly an hour passed until people thought all was safe, but without warning, flames quickly made their way through the roof, causing it to collapse. Almost immediately, a muffled blast blew out the front of the building.

"Within the blink of an eye the aurora fire department would forever be changed," the post said.

Images courtesy of Aurora Fire Department