The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1881-07-09

broken by the pressure of the burning
flood. s3d its course 10 the creeks cam
not be hindered. Then places far re-
moved from the original coufiagration
are in imminent peril.
Oil f. es are frequently attendt d with
incidents of thrilling nature In one
OF the forest fires of last simmer forty
thousand barrel iron tank filled with
oil was set on fire at the head of deep
gully which was crossed by the Ken
dali aud Eldred Railroad on Q trestle.
The fire in the woods was all about
the trestle. and when 9 passenger train
approached il was not considered safe
to cross. There were fifty passengers
on the train. They alightei and be-
gan TO cross the gully on foot. The
ravine was twenty feet deep and fifty
wide, with sloping sides Some of the
passengers had crossed it and were
climbing up the opposite bank. others
were still crossing. and there were
probably twenty. five in the bottom of
the rayine. when the top of the burn
ing tank fell in and food of flaming
oil was roaring down upon them. The
last person had barely climbed ont of
the gully when the flood of flame swept
by. The train had started slowly
across the trestle after the passengers
had all slighted and had just cleared it
when the oil rushed beneath it end set
il on fire.
When tse fire swept Reed City away
in May OF last year, a 10000 barrel
tank was burning fiercely, add dense
column of smoke and flames arose to a
hight of q hundred feet. The wind
was blowing in strong gusts. Sudden
ly whirlwind caught the fire and
smoke ct the tank, separated them from
it ID q body. and carried the lurid
mass whirling ana roaring upward of
200 feet. There the cloud was seized
by strong current that hurled it off
in westerly direction nearly mile
In this flight tue flames descended rap
idly toward the earth again. and in the
latter part of its course fred six oil
wells, the derrick, house. and 1000
barrel wooden tank. The cloud of fire
and smoke was then dropped into the
woods, where it started a destructive
confagration in district that had been
considered out of the way of possible
danger.
Fire was communicated to the woods
near the house of John Hutchinson.
James Rathbun and Walter Dye went
to help Hutchinson fight the flames
away from the house. On one side of
the house was an S0O-barrel tank filed
with oil; on the other side was 600
barrel tank. There were oil wells and
derricks on ell sides. The fire was an
eighth of mile away, and strong
wind was blowing it toward the house.
A burning branch was carried by the
wind and deposited on the 60O,barrel
tank. 1t was soon in flames. Almost
Immediately thereafter the other tank
caught fire. simultaneously, several
derricks were wrapped in flames. The
men were surrounded by fire. The
heat was insufferable. There was no
escape through the circle of fame.
Hutchinson had plowed his garden that.
day. The only thing he and his CON-
panions could think of doing was to
crawl to the fresh turned ground and
lay their faces against it. Three feet
above them hing the cloud of heated
vapor. In that position, and with
those surroundings, the three men lay
for five hours. Then the tank ex-
ploded. The derrick and buildings had
been consumed long before. Fortu-
Rately the tanks were built on ground
the decline of which carried the oil
away from the men. With the flowing
away of the burning oil the fury OF
the confagration was spent. The
three men were able to drag them.
selves to q spring near by. There
they were found badly blistered. Rath.
bun never recovered bis eyesight. The
other men were disabled for weeks.