The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-08-10
GRAPHIC STORY
OF BURNING WELL
Well Flowing 10000 Barrels
Ignites and IIIuminates
an Immense Area.

Preparations are being made by the
Pearson company to cap the burning oil
well at an opportune time when there is a
relaxation in the gushing, says the Next
can Herald of Sunday last. The last re-
ports that were had from the scene of
operations was to the effect that 1t would
be possible in one of those moments when
the force was off to rush in and cap the
we'll. and it may be that by this time the
occasion has presented itself and the
burning well may be conquered.
The flow has begun to weaken, but at
the same time the force was terrific
that the drag scheme was not thought to
be practicable. However. with the proper
equipment, which is now on the ground,
the well can be capped by quick action.
One of the best descriptions of the sit
uation is given as follows by gentleman
who has recently returned from a visit
to the burning well:
The estimated height of the flames was
1.450 feet, with occasional bursts of flame
which rose at least % per cent higher.
The column of flame at its widest part
was about one-third the height of the
flame. its average width. taking the entire
height of the column at 1:4o feet. was
about $50 feet. 1t was possible to read
newspaper with great ease at a distance
of seventeen miles.
The general form of the flame was a
narrow trunk sometimes like that of a
which then widened out, presenting
form something like that of poplar tree
with the lower limbs trimmed Off AT
the uppermost part of the flame, dark
column of smoke extended to height OF
about 1900 feet, which was capped by
cauliflower-shaped white cloud extending
to the height of about 1900 feet higher,
making a total elevation of 5000 feet.
The smoke then drifted away In thin hor-
izontal layers as far as the eye could
reach. The cubic contents of the mass of
flame, not counting the bursts and
tongues of fire. were estimated at some
$40 900 cubic yards, at the very least. Based
on this ii can be calculated that at any
moment there were 800 cubic feet of pc
troleum in the column of flame; taking
one cubic inch to each two cubic feet of
the mixture of burning petroleum Vapor
and air. and estimating each cubic foot
to weigh sixty pounds, 16O tons OF petro-
leum were being consumed at any given
moment.
The burning was more or less pulsating
in its character The time that a flash or
pulsation of flame took from the moment
il left the ground to the time 1t reached
the upper extremity OF the flame was
about thirty seconds. so that il can be fig
ured that IL travelled upward at an aver
age speed of twentyeight miles an hour
for the whole distance, the speed being a
great deal greater at the base-perhaps
sixty miles an hOur-and decreasing as its
momentum dwindled down i'm the upper
section of the column of flame. From the
information obtanable the amount of oil
consumed was above 10000 barrels per
day.
The land illuminated was sufficient TO
allow the reading of a newspaper by the
light of the burning well for an area of
over go square miles, besides the great
extension of twilight beyond less and less
intense until complete darkness was
reached When the big flashes took place
il had an effect the clouds similar to
the hue taken when flash of lightning
occurs.
The we'll that caught fire was new
one that was being driven. 1t had already