The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-15
TUNNEL CAUSED SEWER BREAK
ASH CART ENGULFED IN FRONT
or THE WALDORF-ASTORTA.
Pennsylvania Tunnel. Is Fees Below, HAD
Reached the PIaee-Pecxet There ne
low the Red OF an Ola stream Surface
weakened when 1t was Pumped Out.

weakepsd When 1t Was Pumped Out
Edward Mahoney, the driver Of an ash
wagon, realized last night that there was a
Pennsylvania Railroad tunnel under a
street Of this city when his loaded wagon
sank nearly out of sight on Thirty-third
street Just beside the wsldOrf-AstOria Hotel
about 7.So o'clock.
Mahoney il employed as a teamster by
Richard J. Donovan, who has a contract to
carry away the ashes from the Waldorf
Astoria and load them on scows at the foot
of East Twenty-ninth street. Last night
Mahoney got his load of ashes in Astor
court and started east on Thirty-third street
toward the scows. He had a load of about
three tons and the horses we're going slowly.
Just between the two ladies entrances oil
the south side OF the hotel. whore there is a
big covered manhole in the street, the right
rear wheel broke through the asphalt pave
mont. The break in the street widened and
deepened until almost in an instant the
rear end Of the wagon was out OF sight and
the load Of ashes was pouring down the
chasm.
At the first lurch Mahoney was thrown
over the horses backs to the tongue Of
the z The horses plunged and
scraped the driver's legs and hip, but as
sistance came speedily from the nearby
cab drivers and Mahoney wal extricsted.
At the first crash several Of the guests ran
out from the Palm Room and remained
interested spectators OF the engulfing OF
the cart. Within five minutes after the
time when the asphalt first cracked all
the wagon with the exception OF the front
wheels and the tongue was below h level
of the street, and every few minutes there
would be another subsistence OF a few
inches.
n investigation revealed that the truck
had crashed through the top Of the street
sewer about FIVE feet below the street level.
As soon a. the accident happened the Ten
derloin police station was notified. The
, reserves were sent around TO the hole In
| the street and the officers OF the Console
dated Gas Company we're notified that
some OF the gaspipes might be severed.
The police, fearing that more OF the street
might give way, roped il off between Fifth
avenue and Aston court and closed the
sidewalk on the south side Of the street.
The side entrances to the Waldorf were
mus closed to carriages for the night.
notification of the oavein was sent
to the offices of the United Engineering
and Contracting Company, which has
tho contract for putting the Pennsylvania
! tunnels through from North River to East
River under Thirty-third street and whose
main shaft has been u on T~hirty-third
street between Madison avenue and Fourth
avenue. Chief Engineer Brown went dowr
the shaft and out into the tunnel which
runs west from that place. After he had
made an examination of the tunnel he gave
out a statement.
The tunnel is being Iun east and west
from the shaft between Madison and Fourth
avenues" he said. "The westerly TUNE
has reached a point just below the spot
were the cavein on Thirty-third street
took place. The floor of the tunnel is lE
feet below he street the roof il rs feet below
when we approached this spot near th'
Waldorf-Astoria We looked for trouble
Old citv maps confirmed the inference
drawn from the conformation of the straits
we encountered there, and that was tina
we were crossing below the bed OF an ole
dream. The stream ran in a genera
direction from north to south. At this poin
the bedrock below the stream bed took {
sudden dip down, forming a sag or pocket
through the bottom of which we had L
drive our tunnel. In other words, we haC
TO cut of the keel OF the dip in the strata.
when we began to do this we founC
that an accumulation OF water from thu
pipes below the street surface had gathered
in this cup shaped space and with it loos'
gravel and earth. When we pumped thu
water out the suction undermined the con
glomerate there and, / guess, weakened thu
whole section of earth between the toI
Of the tunnel and the surface of the street
That probably caused the asphalt above
the sewer to give way under the weight of tn
asn cart"
Mr.. Brown reported that no excess o
water was noticeable in The tunnel under tn
place where the wagon went through ant
hat this led him 20 believe that the bottom
of the sewer against which the wagon drov
in its descent had not been broken.