The Deadly Avalanche at Cascade Tunnel
A massive snowslide buries a Great Northern cook house, claiming the life of a camp cook.
Melting snow caused a huge avalanche down the side of the mountain onto a cook house run by Contractor Boyington for the Great Northern at the west entrance to Cascade tunnel. Most of the workmen were away, but John Olson, cook, and Harry Ellirker, waiter, were buried. Sixty men, after working several hours, uncovered the body of Olson, but at last report his companion had not been found.
“Sixty men, after working several hours, uncovered the body of Olson, but at last report his companion had not been found.”
The Cascade Tunnel remains a vital, albeit challenging, piece of Washington's rail infrastructure. This tragedy highlights the extreme environmental hazards faced by early 20th-century laborers working to carve transit routes through the rugged Cascades.
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