The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-01-29
CAVE-INS OVER
THE NEW SEWER
CAUSES ALARM
Ground Sinks at Eighth West
and North Temple and at
Several Other Places.
QUICKSANDS THEORY
ADVANCED BY ENGINEER
WORK ACCEPTED BY BOARD OF
WORKS WHILE SEWER WAS
FILLED WITH WATER.

Ground covering the iutcrcepting sewer
FOR a distance of fifty feet. AT Eighth
West and North Temple. caved in yes
terday. with the result that members OF
the city council and city officials ars
more seriously alarmed about this piece
Of work than al any time since it was
started Reports to the couucil commit
tees last evening stated that the amount
of the damage cannot b. asceftained. but
tt appears that some of the water mains
have be, broken. and perhaps part of
the sewer itself has settled and broken
Mike OCOuuOr, superintendent for
James Kennedy. who built the sewer.
rushed crowd Of men TO thc break yes
teTday, but has not yet been able 60 as
I certain the exact amount Of damage. I.
I G. Kelsey, city engineer. viii nave his
I men on the spot this morning TO ascel-
I tain the extent of the damage, so that a
report may be made to the council.
The big break at Eighth South and West
: Temple streets is but the worst one OF
many. In other places the ground has
I given way The city engineer believes
that quicksand is responsible for the dam
/ age.
Another bad break was discovered yes
terday at the corner OF Second North AMI
Eighth West. where a piece Of ground
eight feet square and seven feet deep haa
fallen in Dut the full extent OF tEe JAM
&c here Is also unknown. All along tne
line Of the sewer there are smaller holes
where the ground has settled.
IT,
ported ali this to the street committee
last evening. but there was no opportu-
rity for that committee 60 do anything.
, The city engineer had already been mott
, fled by Mr. O'Connor. who has been TAX
ing out the bulkheads IN the sever So
that the pumps may get the water out.
At Eighth West and South Temple
streets Mr.. o COnnor mad rugged up pumps
b. to get clear OF water i'm the stump. tis
kept pumping and the water filled In as
fast as he could get rid Of it. It was in
this way that he discovered Iu3t the Wa
! ter mains were broken. He had been
trying to pump out The water Of the
L whole of Big Cottonwood. with some from
Q Pariey'S canyon I'D CITY creek thrown IN
d 1t is the opinion Of some that the sew
= 1 CT has settled and that it Is dropping
j. in many more places than where Il shows
i the worst At Eighth West and South
n Temple the ground looks like a picture OF
q San Francisco after the earthquake There
T IS much anxiety, and meeting OF the
t city board of works viii probably be
= called at once to determine Just Wher
4 the city is al on this work
+ The dropping in Of these places mas
: / nothing TO do with the starting OF the
pumps last week The pumps were mere
" removinz the water from the inside
/ of the sewer and their operation could
80 / have had no effect on the SURROUNDING
y ground The Quicksand theory Is the only
q way in which the officials can explain t.
e Contractor Was Paid.
9 The intercepting sewer work has beer
nothing but record Of delays ana mis-
- takes The board of works which has
y had charge OF the work. has been IN bot
water ever since the work began. The
= contractors skirts are clear. The board
q Of works had its inspectors on the wOrH
Il during its whole progress ~ hen lt Wa-
finished the board accepted it. though il
was full Of water at the time
James Kennedy. the contractor. ma
mon paid his final estimate Ga the work
There was even no obligation on him q
n remove the bulkheads which we're IN th'
sewer. but he did so.
II aggregate over $4,000 The people OF tn'
r west side have been waiting for tire
Il years for It's opening, which meant tha
IN apDroxims tei5 fifteen miles Of seWe
F. could be put I'm practical operation
a. There had been much trouble from On
D. start. and II finally eliminated IN en-
% fix in which the board Of works lande'
Ia the CITY over the outlet. That was par
3 TALLY disposed of by securing waive
d Of rights Of acceptance from the con
be- tractor and starting the pumps leaks ID
Y the wood stave pipe or no. The pump
n are running now and there seems no pros
h pect Of the leaks being stopped Now Oh
sewer itself seems in fair way 10 CIV
way in spots
= Sewer Laid Deep.
The sewer is laid very deem iu som
= places. For its whole length ID runs lror
y ten feet to as deep as twenty feet. Wher
= the biggest break occurred yesterday
, is nearly nineteen feet under ground
, IS the depth at this point that leads
= the belief that the sewer itself may no
y / have been broken and that Il has mere
= " settled The sewer pipe az Eight
= J West and South Temple IS IS inches wid
3 I and the sewer Itself is four feet thick.
y There is no doubt whatever that 81
- water mains have broken. The water
pouring out IN sufficient quantity to max
/ that clear. II was stated az the commit
tee Meeting that a manhole at the poif
de Of the csve-in had fallen IN, but this wa
as not verified.
81 There are many quicksands IL the nOrtl
ne western part Of the city and. indeed, ui
OF der a considerable portion OF salt Lax
it VE-be-, sf7e sovver vas laid a few wear
< ago. near s.. Marks hospital there wei
M several cave-ins when the ground bega
en- to drain. and one man. whose house fe
Continued on Page 2.