The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1920-08-03
EXPLOSION IN RENO
WAS LIKE CYCLONE

| RENO, Nevada.-Reno got up be-
fore breakfast Monday morning-no
foolin According to the hotel clock
it was $40 am. when the garage over
in Front street "let go" and started
for the unknown
Speaking for myself, / heard no
sound of the explosion, although the
blast is said to have been terrific.
awoke grudgingly, with peculiarly
uncertain sense of trouble brewing
somewhere, | know not in what di-
rection. 1t was much as / have been
awakened by earthquake shocks at
different times. 1t was similar, Bill.
to the earthquake sensation we once
experienced on certain Pacific
steamship when we rounded Point
Conception at midnight and ran into
a headwind
And women in the crowded Reno
hotel ran about and screamed at one
another and other things, much as
women did on the steamship. Commo
ton began and the hotel was in an
uproar before the fire alarm sounded
felt of the wall to ascertain if it was
hot, and it wasn't, so | decided lit
tie shake" has disturbed us. and at
tempted to continue my sleep.
Then heavy male voice on my
floor called: There's a roaring big
fire right down town. Come and see
it," Everybody came-and nobody
was in full dress. There was not
much fire to be seen by the time
guests had dressed and reached the
street. l did not understand at first
what all the broken glass might mean.
Had an impression of some sort Of
Sim Fein celebration.
Those who saw the first part of the
fire said a mass of flame seemed to
roll two hundred feet into the air.
The thing seemed to let go with botl
barrels at once. one aimed at the City
Hall and one at the Y.M.C.A. building
Widow sash in the latter were torn
and twisted into pieces. The Majestic
theatre. the Nixon and Gazette build
ings suffered considerable damage.
1t was certainly an amusing early
morning crowd which .congregated for
several blocks around the scene of
the explosion. All sorts of expert
ences and impressions were related.
Many curious freaks of the explosion
were noted A large plank stood on
end on the corEice of the Front street
side of the Nixon building. From the
street nothing could be seen to sup
port it. Apparently it had shot down
ward arrow-like. stabbed into the
cornice and remained fast.
1t seemed remarkable that all about
the district which absorbed the sever
ity of the shock, one window would
be broken, the next one was not
damaged. while that in the front of
the Western Union telegraph og-
fee, further away in the same build
ing. was shattered. The same phe-
nomenon was noticed in other build
ings.
In an electric equipment shop on
the west side of Virginia street, be-
tween First and Second, a hole was
blown through an upper corner of
one plate glass and the window dis
play within was considerably mussed
up, one electric lamp being smashed.
while the other window OF the same
shop appeared unshaken.
Returning to the hotel lobby after
the excitement had died down some
what, many "reminiscences of the San
Francisco fire were heard. All day
Monday the big jar was the subject of
conversation in Reno. Every condition
and circumstance about the explosion
seemed as lucky as could be possi-
BILE in such an event.
Sam Arentz. Republican candidate
for Representative in Congress. was
in Reno Sunday night. He had been
harvesting wheat for five days at his
ranch at Simpson. Mrs. Arentz ac-
companied her husband on this trip.