The Morning examiner. [volume] (Ogden, Utah) 1904-1910, 1910-03-13
MANSON Tells
OF WASHOUTS
Back From Fight With Floods
in Nevada Describes
Conditions.
Southern Pacific Superintendent
Explains Difficulties Over
come In Nevada.

Tanned like n long campalgner, SUI
perlntendent L. c. Manson OF the Salt
Lake division of the Southern Pa
cific, returned TO Ogden from Nevada
at an early hour Yesterday. where
he has been for the past two weeks
experimenting the rebuilding and re-
pairing OF the line which was dam.
aged by the recent floods.
After hurried trip OF inspection
through the railroad yards, extending
Twentieth street 10 Twenty-eighth
street. and the machine shops and the
improvement work that is being done
in the Union Depot yards, Mr. Manson
and Assistant Superintendent Row
lands returned to their desks in their
Offices to devote their attention to 4
mass OF spondencc that required
immediate attention While in the
midst Of his work Superintendent
Manson received a representative of
this paper and made brief and con-
else statement of the extent of the
damage done BY the floods.
Tho greatest damage was in the
Palisade canyon. between Pallsade
and Beowawc. Here the loss will
reach 100000 The rampage OF the
Humboldt river in the ten-mile canyon
is hard to describe. Not only did the
Southern Pacific get hit hard. but also
the Western Pacific, and the town of
Pallsade, which was about half
washed away. In this affected dis
trict the river changed its course in
e IL oh
tated the building OF three new
bridges where there never was
thought of placing bridge
The abutment at one end Of bridge
No. 10, in the canyon, was washed
out and the bridge turned turtle. To
get the line around this point 1t was
necessary TO build a "shoo fly" 300
feet in length. This was accomplished
in three days with two crews of men
working night and day. At the six
other bridges that were put out of
commission Ii was necessary 10 build
approaches from sixty 10 seven hun
dred feet in length. The points where
new bridges had to be built was at
Tyro. where a l50-foot bridge was
built; at Cluro. l10-foot bridge. and
at Battle Mountain, over the Reese
river. a 150-foot bridge
In the construction of tho bridges
pile drivers were kept at work day
and night In the big spans 10 be
bridged two pile drivers were used
one nj each side of the opening, and
an extra pile driver was kept on hand
in case OF breakdown.
One great cause of many OF the
bridges going out was the fact that
many OF the buildings of the town Of
PaliSadc were washed down the river,
and they lodged against the bridges
Of the Southern Pacific company. the
great floods beating against them un.
Ill the bridges weakened and gave
way
AT every point possible along the
line the company, during the flood,
had great derrickS at work. and as
fast as the distractions struck the
bridges they were lifted from the
river In many cases this work saved
tho complete demolition of the bridges
and buildings.
Western Pacific Destroyed.
The line of the Western Pacific
company through Ten-Milc canyon
was constructed between the South
ern Pacific's present line and the old
grade, narrowing the rivers chan
mel. The Western Pacific line next
to the river was struck first In many
cases. Ten bridges OF the company
were weakened or washed away
These bridges, like the many build
inGs from the town of Pallsade, were
washed against the bridges of the
Southern Pacific.
In the Palisade canyon the line OF
| the Western Pacific is practically
wiped out and will require months
TO rebuild Ten bridges In this can
yon have been wrecked and many
pieces OF the roadbed from one hun.
dred TO seven hundred feet in length
have been washed out.
The Southern Pacific company has
given the Western Pacific people per-
mission to connect with their track at
Beowawe. and Western Pacific trains
with Southern Pacific pilots Will use
the latter's tracks as far west as
EIko.
The first Western Pacific train
will run over the Southern Pacific's
tracks this evening at s o'clock.
At Loray, 13o miles west OF Ogden.
tho roadbed OF the Southern Pacific
company, which was constructed In
1869 by the old Central Pacific com
pany through a stretch OF country
which has never been known to be
flooded. was washed away al many
] points At Loray. a bridge ninety
feet in length and thirty feet high
was constructed and about mile and
one-half OF the rondbed "crlbbcd. "
Ihirty-foot piling was used at Loray,