Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-06-09
A TUNNEL on FIRE.
Unique ConnagratiOn Under the
Ground on the Santa Fe Road

Los Angeles Correspondence Chicago Record.
One of the most exciting stories I have
heard out here is about the fire in John
sons tunnel, down on the Santa Fee line,
where it perces Bill Williams mountain,
Bill Williams was an old-timer. one of the
first settlers Of Arizona, and a great man
in his way. A monument has been erected
to his memory on the side of the mountain
that bears his name. He discovered the
best pass over the Rockies in this zone, and
the results of his enterprise and intelli-
gence are seen in every direction. There is
a Bill Williams river, as well as a Bill
Williams mountain and a Bill Williams
town.
johnson was one of the engineers who
laid out the original right of way for the
Atlantic and Pacific railway, which is now
the Santa Fe, and in running a line through
the Bill Williams canyon he struck a place
where the mountain projected over it so
that it could not be cut away and 1t was
impossible to build a bridge, So Johnson
bored a tunnel 326 feet long through the
solid granite, and built 1T up inside with
timbers covered with sheet IRON. 1t hap
pened to be- however, a limestone fOrma-
ton and the lfmewater that trickled down
from the rocks ate away the iron Sheeting
in spots. The matter was reported sew
eral times at headquarters, and the super
intendent at Albuquerque sent UP the ma
terial for new lining, which was extra
galvanized, as to be rust proof. 1t hap
pened that at just about that time there
was a tremendous lot of traffic, and the
Santa Fe Company had to borrow several
engines to help haul its freight. The extra
engines burned soft coal and coughed up
lots of sparks, one of which managed to
creep through n hole that the linewater
had eaten in the lining of the tunnel and
set the wood that was under 1t on fire.
1t must have been smoldering a week or
before discovered ha Il
neers reported that there was a good deal
of smoke in the tunnel, but 1t was not con-
sidered a matter of any Importance until
the iron sheeting got so hot that it could
be noticed by the people in the trains that
ran through. Then an examination was
made, and at the request of the section
boss they hauled up a lot of water in tanks,
from the nearest supply point which was
twelve miles away But when this water
was thrown on 1t Stacked the lime and
made the fire worse than ever. All traffic
was stopped for week on the whole
length of the road and the superintendent
and all the other big men of the road were
up there to fix things.
AS soon as the tunnel was cool enough
they sent in every man who could be hired
to work there. They tore out all the old
lining and replaced 1t with new wood plank
ing and galvanized sheets Of iron. The job
was rapidly dons and nicely finished. The
laborers were all sent away, the debris was
all cleaned up and disposed Of and the
trains had resumed their schedule time
about one day, when the operator sent a
telegram to overtake the superintendent
who was on his way home, and told him
that the tunnel was on fire again. 1t had
caught before his special train was out OF
sight.
Perhaps one of the old timbers was care
lessly left smoldering: perhaps the new
| timbers ignited from the stacking lime. bu
| however it happened 1t was burning weel
| before the men could go back into the tun
| mel again, and it took two weeks to clea1
800 vNr,t tn, bnin a
| proof. The workmen demanded so day
| wages, so great was the danger from ga:
| and lime and falling rocks. and so intense
was the heat. The superintendent of con
| the repairs were going on. Several othe
men were permanently disabled by SINH
| lar accidents and the cost of repairs wa
| several hundred thousand dollars, to sa!
| nothing of the earnings that were lost b.
| the suspension of traffic while the johnson
| tunnel was on fire.