El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-02-04
D0F 7 LIGHT PIPE
OEGASOLINE CAR
ArExplosives Expert Tells
Railroad Men to Be
Careful.

ne explosion OF q tank of gasoline
lphe railroad yards at Ardmore, OKLA
o September p, 1915, was the nor
RE example" used by Col. j. J.. Taylor,
asstant TO the chief inspector OF the
freau OF explosives Of the American
Rilway association, I'm a talk on EN-
,osives" TO 100 railroad men at the
NJ c. A. Thursday night.
The Ardmore disaster resulted IN the
1ss OF between 40 and 80 lives and
Re aestruction Of fuliv 81 .OOO. 900 worth
Il property. according TO Col Taylor,
and could easily have been aVerteo
4 had there been a thorough knoWleoke
Aof the manner Of handling gasohhe IN
Hank cars.
arrba car had stood in the railroad
Yards two days, when orders were re
caived to move IL to refinery, SAID
Col TavIor. When the yard master
inspected the car he observed that
gases were escaping from 1t and, know
ing the danger Of escaping gases, re-
used TO permit the car TO be re-
moved. The refinery was notified and
man. supposedly an expert, was sent
DOWN TO relieve the pressure OF gas.
"Witbout reducing the pressure OF
gas inside by spraying lhe IAil NJ nc
removed the top Of the Dome mere
was q great rush OF vapU and nquid
from the car The vapoi ard nquld
rose into the air and spread over a
wide area. Within radius OF 9VV Ieet
was a switch lamp and an asphalt rae
tory where fire was hiu isslil.'l 70
melt the asphalt. The investigators OF
fbe accident reported that Ire was
communicated to the yapors by one
or the other of the two fires ana the
tremep 4ous explosion Of the gasoline
car was the result"
-Four other EXPLOSIVES.
Col. Taylor read from BE records
Gov % =
that had occurred under Snllar con-
ditions. each entailing loss OF NE OF
injury to men and destruction OF
property. ..,...
"rThe Interstate commercecommissio
rules require that in car containing
explosive oils there shall lett some
air space equal TO two percent OF tne
total capacity OF the car, ne said. lie
then read from the recorH, showing
that the tank car at Ardmoe was over
loaded: that the liquid cme up INTO
the dome fully one inch, Whereas Il
should not have been in he dome at
all.
at is as essential to abroad men
to know the laws OF natre as II is 20
have a knowledge Of otter laws ana
regulations" said Col aylor. You
railroad men have a tremadous respon-
sibIlity and. in order 10 you TO SAFE
. guard your own lives ad the lives OF
the public. you must hae knowledge
Of the rules and regultions AFFECTING
transportation, particuTIy lh0se gov
erning the handling explosives.
Once the manufactJer and shippers
fought the American ailway associa-
ton in its efforts minimize the
dangers in shipping eplosives and in
flammable commoditiL We now have
their cooperation
Movie inns.
The speaker callet attention to the
danger from movingpicture films and
cited the regulatiorthat require that
films shall not be plced near radiators
or other sources ofleat He referred
to a fire that occ1rel IN an express
car in the NORTHWEST when $4,000
worth Of Christma0ackages ana other
express packages ere destroyed, pre-
sumably by some ncture INNS eaten
ing fire from a rdfator-
How TO HHdle Dynamite.
BY means OF ereopticon slides he
showed the prop manner OF loading
dynamite. black powder, acids, cylin-
ders containing gases, TO keep them