The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-01-29
TUNNEL IN
COhSTOCK MINES
IS ON FIRE
Unless Checked Loss Will
Reach Millions
GAS MAY KILL SEVEN MINERS
Nineteen OF Crew OF Fire Fighters
Overcome and Rescued With
Difficulty.

Virginia City, New. Jan. 2S.-Flames
have been raging In the great Sutro
Tunnel, which drains all the Comstock
mines, for more than thirty hours.
Unless they are quenched soon the
great bore will be choked and all the
mines will be flooded and made idle
for months, causing the loss OF mil
lions of dollars. All the miners in the
district are on hand, fighting the
hemes underground, in shifts. Nine
teen of them have been overcome In
this dangerous work and have been
rescued with difficulty. OF these sew
en- may die.
The Sutro tunnel, with its laterals,
is u miles long and is large enough
in addition to its drain. for a trolley
line. which has been operated for the
wOrkmen in the various mines. II
carries OF all the water in the various
workings tapping them between the
1900 to POO feet levels. 1t was plan
ned by Adolph Sutro, afterward Mayor
of San Francisco, and was completed
thirty years ago, being regarded as
one Of the greatest engineering feats
of the time 1t relieved the necessity
for huge pumps in the mines and its
value has been incalculable.
The fire started at the junction OF
the Savage and South laterals four
miles from the mouth Of the tunnel,
at O'Clock Wednesday night. II
burned back east to the combination
lateral, distance of 1000 feet and
the upcast of the combination drew
the flames into the $500 foot shaft,
where hundreds of feet Of the timber
used in the construction was destroy.
| ed. Water was poured down on the
flames and the fire was stopped IN
the shaft.
Men from the mouth OF the tunnel
worked into the Combination juno.
lion and fought the flames back to the
westward. Men from the Consoldac-
ed Virginia mine fought the fire out
of the north lateral and bulkhead lat
eral when it had good start. but the
! flames had burned away the bulk
heads and destroyed the water pipes
in this lateral and the main tunnel
The fire jumped 800 feet into the
| Ward or south lateral The Ward
mine brought all of its men from the
lower workings up to the 1900 foot
level where a fight was started 10
back the flames down to a junction
with the main tunnel, 500 feet away
Gas flames and smoke overcome the
whole crew who were at this work
and the men were rescued only by the
heroic efforts OF their companions
who improvised diving suits from rub
Der cloth and used dentists gas bags
filled with air, which they breathef
as they went into the gas.
They had a difficult time in finding
their comrades and in taking then
to the mouth of the lateral. The meT
were treated on the 1900 foot level by
a physician who had been lowered
down the shaft 1t was said by the
doctors that seven Of the 4, eteel
would PROBABLY die, as thy ha'
hreathvd the gus too long all WEE
brought 10 the surface and de being
cared for in an improyised hospital.
It was found impossible to Quencl
the fire in the Ward lateral becaus,
of tbs heavy gas, "A II WAS abandon
ed the niu soekiuS only to reven
the m from sCtlily ~" ne niu'
workings. 1t Is impossible to &c
within 500 feet OF the flames.
When rews Of the fire was sprea'
all tie mine superintendent, AL tn
miners and all men in Virginia Cit
who were available went to tue mine
and the tn.nel mouth to he p in t.
fight. They went into various bore
in shifts and many tales OF aer)isr
are told
East u the Combination Junction
the tracks and timbering have bee
torn out to remove food for the fame
should the fire back up. Water
shut off and four feet deep In mai
tunnel at Justice mine.
The tunnel is huge bore but 1t
now so nearly blocked that only tin
streams are flowing out. II the wall
Of the tunnel continue to cave in a
the mines will be flooded. All tn
electric power from the surroundia
cities has been turned into the mine
to speed up the electric pumps AN
relieve the rising water,
From the mouths OF all the smart
connected with the tunnel smoke
rising. showing the extent Of tn
flames. It is feared that they Will ~
into some of the mine workings an
the disaster will be greatly eXtende'