Evening star., 1909-04-22
ICE JAM MAY YIELD
Subsiding Waters Give Hope of
Relief.
DYNAMITE TO BE USED
Pack Is Twelve Miles Long and
Sixty Feet High.
GRAVE DANGER OF PESTILENCE
Sewage of Border Cities Thrown Up
on River Banks-Channels
Are Charged.
GRAVE DANGER OF PEsT1LENCT

|
beginning to break in the critical condi-
ton which for several days has threat
ened the towns along the Niagara river
from the gorging of the channel with Ice
which has been carried over the falls.
The force of the river current. crowded
with loose Jumps of Ice. evidently has
| ground out smooth subway for itself
beneath the main mass of the foe, for
water in cellars rose only five inches dur
ing the night and receded an equal dis
tance In the early dawn.
The ice, plowing the upper banks. up
roofing huge trees and pulverizing docks
and lighthouses. is still poised on its lofty
level. The middle line Of the surface OF
the foe. however, apparently has dropped
a few feet.
| 12 Miles Long, 60 Feet High.
The jam is Of appalling proportions. 1t
is twelve miles in length. and in many
places sixty feet in depth. and represents
millions of tons and a strength powerful
enough to annihilate the four villages
along it's border II 1t should start to go
out all at once.
] Another element Of horror is It's pesti
lential nature. Mingled with the slushy
ice and cast high on the banks is q weeks
sewage from all cities along the Niagara
frontier
The plan Of Henry A. kunzie, assist
ant state superintendent of public works,
and Charles A. Tuttle, an expert on high
explosives, who yesterday afternoon de-
cided on a method of procedure and In
the evening obtained the permission of
the city to carry it out, is first to blow
off the head of the ice pack now project
/ ing into Lake Ontario by an enormous
| then be successfully separated from the
1 whole and allowed to drift out into the
lake.
Three wagonloads Of dynamite were
sent from Buffalo last night for this pur-
/ pose, and are now safe in Youngstown
! at the mouth Of the river.
i Capt. Mitchell, officer in command OF
Fort Niagara. has offered the assistance
of his 12O men,.
i Capt Nelson, in charge Of the life-sav-
ing station at Youngstown. and his crew
of seven men will also help in the break
Assistant Supt. Kunzie and Mr.. Tuttle
have arrived here and are now on their
way to Youngstown.
Dynamite at Hand.
i A ton of dynamite reached youngstown
during the night by wagon from Buffalo.
Just as soon as the officials reach Youngs-
town the work Of dynamiting the ice
jam will be begun.
| While the War Department at Wash
| ington believes the ice too soft to re-
| spond to dynamite 1t has given its con-
sent to the experiment. and Mr. Tuttle
| will proceed with the work. kuunze. who
| has already looked the jam over. figures
that the ice is piled sixty feet high
and that 1t will cost 5000 to make the
trial.
The situation is particularly grave at
Niagara-on-the-Lake. The Michigan Cen
| tral railway is moving out all the goods
from its storehouse there: and the resi-
dents are preparing to flee. The Gorge
! Road tracks are submerged from the
| Whirlpool to the suspension bridge. and
great damage has already been done. II
the ice rises few feet more the bridge
will certainly be carried away Some
| idea of the height of the pack at this
| point may be had when 1t Is known that
ordinarily the bridge Is eighty feet above
| the waterline.
Carrying All Before It.
AS the ice coming over the falls moves
down to the main pack it slices the
banks, taking trees, rocks and every
thing else before it. Many a boulder
and landmark have already disappeared
and more will go tomorrow. When the
food strikes the pack part OF the water
! sets back toward the falls and the rest
| forces Its way under, over and through
| the ice to lower levels. Fear is ex-
kpressed for the safety of the Canadian
| governments lighthouse at Niagara-on-
the-Lake and for the United States life-
saving station at Fort Niagara The ice
| has reached the towers Of the Ontario
Power Company at Niagara University
| and the plant may be injured. The COM
pany supplies LockpOrt with electric
power.
| It is now said that the river between
Lewiston and Fort Niagara may be
| closed next summer as a result Of the
jam. The ice clings to the river bed and
will undoubtedly tear out the channels
when 1t moves. In this event 1t will be
necessary to dredge new channels be-
fore the river will again be navigable.
Ice Defies Choppers.
Men chopped away the ice from the
veranda of the Cornell Hotel on the
escarpment at Lewiston, but. in a few
moments the mass pushed itself up again
Behind it was a force OF water driven by
hign wind. In the Ice were timbers
torn from docks further up stream, enor-
nous rocks and all kinds of debris
Finally the lower floors of the hotel were
flooded and the guests were notified to
find other quarters.
Col James r. Price, who is In charge
Of the United States Engineer Corps at
Buffalo, does not believe that the lam
can be broken by the use Of dynamite
After he had made tour of inspection
he said that dynamite would have about
the same effect as II would IL exploded
In pile of sand.
He is of the opinion that the situation
Is beyond help.