River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1912-05-30
G A S OLINE


fires and explosions, this depart
ment acting under authority of the
state marshal law. requires all gas
oline in excess of five gallons to be
kept "either in an improved under
ground tank, buried not less than
two feet, ten feet or more from any
building, equipped with standard
pump, or in a substantial, metal
storage tank, housed in separate
building of fire proof material and
construction, ventilated at top and
bottom, and located at least twenty
five feet from any other building"
That the public may more fully
understand the nature and danger
of gasoline, we quote from most
excellent article by L. P. Murray,
published in Fire Prevention"
Gasoline, unlike the heavier pc
troleum products, throws off an ex-
plosive vapor constantly even at eX-
tremely low temperatures. Five
gallons of gasoline will generate
5000 cubic feet OF gas which, when
| lighted, expands to 1000 times this
space. The explosive force of one
gallon of gasoline properly mixed
with air and compressed is equal to
/
1875 pounds of dynamite or four
teen times greater than dynamite.
This means, Mr.. Merchant, that if
you have 100 gallons of gasoline on
hand, you are storing the equivalent
in explosive force to 1866 pounds
of dynamite. Gasoline is in fact
more dangerous to handle than dy-
Mantle, as there is more liability of
an explosion. Dynamite will only
explode from two or three causes,
which may Comparatively speaking)
be easily guarded against and
which must occur in it's immediate
vicinity
The vapor from gasoline is
heavier than air. 1t settles to the
floor and runs along much as
stream of water would, only that it
is an invisible stream. This vapor
will settle and remain in depres-
sion in the floor or under the floor
for days or even weeks, unless dis
turbed by circulation Of air, until
a spark causes the accumulated
vapor to explode. This spark does
not necessa rily have to come from
lighted fire, but may occur through
person striking nail in their shoe
on a nail in the floor or other SINH
lar unavoidable causes. The
records show that under certain at
mospheric conditions spontaneous
combustion will occur in this ac-
cumulated vapor. A case is on
record in which the gasoline fumes
were carried outside of building
to lighted lamp thirty feet away
from the building, and flashing
back to the building, which was Gu
tirely consumed.
1.-THE silent and invisible creep
ing of this vapor from place to place
awaiting favorable conditions to
strike the blow that means loss of
life and property, is terrible thing
to think of. When you consider
how helpless one is and how wholly
at the mercy of his insidious foe,
too much stress cannot be laid upon
the necessity for evaporation-p proof,
fire-proof vented storage tanks.
Consider your attitude toward an
assassin or incendiary bent upon
the destruction of life or property.
| Consider such fiend lurking I'M
seen for days about your place of
business awaiting the favorable
moment to strike the blow that will
MAIN one dear to you and wipe
your business out of existence. If
you are handling gasoline in any
way but the right way, you are in
! just this position and you can never
foresee when the blow will fall.
1T is past understanding, in
view of these facts, that many
merchants with their entire capital
invested, will give so little thought
to safeguarding their interests.
| With the store heated by stoves or a
furnace in the basement, they will
at night lock up this explosive in a
warehouse or building adjacent to,
or connected with, the store. After
locking up fire and this explosive
vapor together, they will in effect
wager their entire investment
against the merely nominal expense
of proof storage, that this vapor
and this fire will not get together"
T. M. PURTELL,
State Fire Marshal.
Horses For Sale
One pair of good farm horses.