The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-03-06
Ninety-two Persons Meet Their
Death and Many Are Hurt
on Summit of the Selkirk
Range in British Columbia.
VICTIMS ALL EMPLOYEES
OF CANADIAN PACIFIC
Avalanche at MountaindaIe on
the Milwaukee Coast Line in
Which One Man Was Killed,
Five Injured and Six Missing
DIGGING FOR THE DEAD

Vancouver, B. c., March 5.-Of
the LOG Canadian Pacific tranmen
and ylaborers burer by an avalanche
IN Rogers Pass, on the summit of the
Selkirk range of the Rocky noun
talns, ninety-two are dead.
As soon as the news reached Revsl-
stoke, a relief train conveying physicians
and nurses and over 200 railway men ard
other citizens was speeding east to Rog-
ers pass. The scene Of the accident was
reached at o'clock this morning when
the task Of digging in the tangled mass
~ oeoIls IN the hope Of finding a few
survivors was commenced with vfgor
calgary made an equally prompt re-
syOnse IL also sent special train with
l50 Worhnen as Well as nurses and doc
Tors, fhe special arrived at Rogers pass
AT 10 O'Clock this morning. Acting Su-
perintendent fitzpatrick OF the Pacific d.
vision Of the Canadian. Pacific railway
leTt Vancouver today for the scene of the
accident
Workmen Caught in Trap.
The first slide occurred at $40 yester-
DAY afternoon in the narrow valley OF
Bear creek flanked on either side bv
pfeelpltous mountains covered with a
deptn OF snow varying from twenty 10
fifty feet. The slide did not come from
very nigh elevation, and was composed
mostly OF snow. 1t had a length Of 500
feet aid a depth OF 80 feet While men
were working to clear the tracks at ~ go
this morning, half Of the first slide hav-
ing been removed, the second avalanche
descended. II started on the side OF the
canyon opposite the point where the first
slide occurred. Thousands Of feet aOvs
a few rolling masses of snow, growing in
volume and momentum. started on a
pathway Of destruction.
Second Slide Crashed Down.
In a few seconds. with a noise like a
thousand thunderbolts crashing in uni
son, the avalanche leaped from shelf 10
shelI, carrying with II a tangled mass OF
Ice, trees and bOulders There was no es-
cape for the unfortunate workers.
The avalanche piled on top of the first
Slide, burying the tracks for d distance
OF quarter of a mile and to a depth OF
% Teet. Hundreds Of thousands of tons
Of other debris in the wake Of the ava
lanche bounded off the huge heaD and
half filled the valley of Bear creek. hun
dreds of feet below
The news OF the disaster was flashed
by lone telegraph operator at way-
side station a mile distant
Railway officials expect that at least
forty-eight hours will elapse before the
line can be cleared. The work will be
with great danger. as other
slides may descend at any moment
There was also another big slide OF
snow and rock this morning a mile east
of the spot where the men were over
whelmed. 1t destroyed a portion OF q
and buried the track for 400
yards to a depth of 60 feet. There were
no victims In the last avalanche
TOday's eastbound express left here as
usual Until the tracks have been cleared
passenger traffic, both east and west
bound, will be handled via the Arrow
lakes, Nelson & the Crows Nest Pass
railway.
TWO More Bodies.
Additional bodies recovered were those
Of A. POttru1f, engineer OF ths work
train and A. MahOn, brakeman.
Another slide occurred on the banks OF
the Kicking Horse river near Palliser to
day. 1t buried the track for a length OF
200 feet to a depth Of . feet. As soon
as this slide is removed a westbound pas
senger train, stalled p miles east OF Rog-
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