Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-03-30
ONTARIO TUNNEL
At PARK CITY
Splendid Roadway Being Made
With Work Of Restoring
Drainage Avenue.
HAPPENED THREE YEARS AGO
Superintendent Ames Receives Praise
Only One Fatality
Occurred

Late reports from Park city Indicate
that the great task of restoring the
Ontario drain tunnel to its former use
fulness again Is progressing in u man
ner highly gratifying to superintendent
George Ames and other officials of the
Ontario company. On Saturday night
the water was down more than 30 feet
below The 1,3O0-foot level and that IT is
recedmg at the rate of between i've
and six feet daily with q continuance
of the Roadway now being made. 1t will
take only about 80 days longer to reach
the tunnel level. hence the latter part
of April should bring forth some inter-
esting developments. Last "Wednesday
was the third anniversary OF the ou-
tario tunnel disaster and the PARK
Record makes the following reference
to it: ,
"The accident happened on a Saturday
evening and at that time II was
thought by all that 1t would be nut q
matter of Il few days, weeks at the OUT
side. until everything would DE IN
shape again and all damage repaired
As the work went on, however, 1t was
found that the consequences were
going TO be more serious than was AT
first anticipated, and though now there
is every reason to believe that tne
task has been for the most part
accomplished, 1t has been most eN-
pensive and difficult undertaking.
Though the work has been more or
less dangerous at all times SO far there
has been but one fatality among the
workmen employed there, the Vlcun
being Andrew Nystrom, VINO was
overcome by bad air and drowned on
the 22nd of November, 1905. rms acGl-
dent occurred about 1900 feet from tue
vxt-tN
tempting to go still farther into the
tunnel TO see what shape it was in, ana
was overcome by the foul air, fell INTO
the water and WAS drowned before mas
fellow-workmen could get to him
''The first cave in the tunnel came
down at a point about l,6O0 feet rom
the portal. ard the carelessness OF the
timbermen employed there at that
time was given as the cause. When
thav had gone off shift they had lett
three sets OF timbers open in the pan
ground without putting in any talse
sets, as they should have DONE anu
the ground naturally gave away. me
first cave was calculated to have beer
| so feet in length. The work OF open
| ing the tunnel was commenced Ut
once -by driving Il driit around the
obstruction, and to tap the peht-
UP waters steel-tipped two-inch pipes
were driven into the main waterway
Inc steer ups were B'iA ~
lew the water to enter. and for awhlle
the plan worked in good shape, the wa
ter rushing forth with tremendous
force AS time went on, however, on
ferent methods were inaughrated. the
diamond drill was put to work, parallel
drifts were run and every other meth
cd which was thought might DC s
cessful. was tried. The work was In
charge of Matt Connolley, who had
been superintendent OF the mine for 20
years, up until February of last year
when he decided TO leave Park city.
and he was succeeded at the tunnel
by 3. A. McRoberts. gentleman
brought In by the new Bamberger
management. McRoberts stayed with
the proposition until May, 1907 when
George Ames stepped into the superin-
tendency, and that gentleman has been
in active charge OF the work since then
Under his personal and efficient direc-
ton every possible effort towards the
| reclamation of the tunnel has been
| made and it now seems certain tFat
his efforts will be successfully crowned,
| and In the near future, too. Inc
| diamond drill has been the main stand
| by in the work during the past sew
| eral months. In February of last year
| the tunnel was opened To No. so 'rt
the news at that time being enthu-
siastically received as indicating that
| a great stride had been made toward
| victory over many very obstinate
problems encountered in the opening
| of the big adit."