Waters-Pierce Oil Company v. Knisel

Decision Date09 July 1906
Citation96 S.W. 342,79 Ark. 608
PartiesWATERS-PIERCE OIL COMPANY v. KNISEL
CourtArkansas Supreme Court

[Copyrighted Material Omitted]

Appeal from Garland Circuit Court; Alexander M. Duffie, Judge reversed.

STATEMENT BY THE COURT.

This is a suit brought by Martin Knisel in the Garland Circuit Court against the appellant, Waters-Pierce Oil Company, hereafter called the "oil company", Arkansas Gas Company, R C. Chambers and Charles Walker, Ed Burke, and Sam and Leo Mayer, to recover damages on account of personal injuries alleged to have been caused by the joint negligence of the defendants in producing an explosion of gasoline vapor in a building called the "Turf Exchange" in Hot Springs on the 24th day of December, 1902.

It is alleged in the complaint that "the defendants, acting in concert through their agents, servants and employees, then and there wrongfully, unlawfully, carelessly and negligently proceeded to transfer the gasoline from the vessel in which it was carried" to the Turf Exchange premises "and in so transferring said gasoline the defendants unlawfully negligently and carelessly allowed a large quantity of said gasoline to leak, escape and run on and under the floor of the Turf Exchange building, and unlawfully, negligently and carelessly allowed said gasoline to explode and wreck said building, thereby inflicting serious and permanent injuries upon the person of the plaintiff, he being in said building at the time," and prays judgment for $ 10,000 on account of such injuries. The defendants filed separate answers, denying all the material allegations, and were represented by different counsel. A jury trial was had, and a verdict was rendered against the oil company alone, and it appeals to this court.

The physical and established facts, as disclosed by the record, are substantially as follows:

The building known as the "Turf Exchange" was located between Central Avenue and Exchange Street in the city of Hot Springs, about 40 feet wide and fronting east on Central Avenue. The building was two stories high. On the first floor was a large single room, which opened on Central Avenue, and extended back west to an open area which extended back of Exchange Street. Chambers and Walker, as co-partners under the firm name of Chambers & Walker, were lessees of the building, and they conducted a saloon in the front part, and Sam and Leo Mayer, as co-partners and sub-lessees of Chambers & Walker, ran what is called a "pool room" in the rear of the building, where pools on horse races were sold; the saloon and pool room being separated by a low partition or screen. Immediately in the rear of the pool room was an open space or area the full width of the building and extended back about 16 feet to a stone retaining wall some 12 inches thick on a line and parallel with Exchange Street. The top of this retaining wall was some 8 or 9 feet above the area, and practically on a level with the adjoining sidewalk on Exchange Street. On the top of this stone retaining wall was a close board or plank fence, some 6 or 7 feet high, with a door opening from Exchange Street to a small platform and stairway leading down to the floor or base of the open area. On the north side of the area there was a high board or plank fence; the south side was the wall of a building, and the east side was the rear end of the pool room, thus entirely enclosing this area, except a door leading into it from the rear end of the pool room, and a small stairway leading down into it from Exchange Street, as before mentioned. The floor or base of this open area was originally dirt, and practically level, slightly inclining to the north and east. In the northeast corner there was an open grate or drain opening for draining the area. There were also two small ventilator openings about on a level with the floor or base of the area opening into the space under the pool room.

There was a coal shed or house in the southwest corner of this area about 10 feet north and south by 6 feet east and west. Its west wall was a part of the stone retaining wall and the close board or plank fence on top of it. There was a doorway opening into the coal house through the board fence above the stone retaining wall near the stairway leading down to the area from Exchange Street. The south wall was the wall of the building adjoining the area and the Turf Exchange building on the south. The north wall was made of plank, and the east wall was a double wall made in this way: there was scantling or studding 2 by 4 or 2 by 5 inches placed perpendicular, the usual distance some 2 or 3 feet apart along the east side of the coal house and planks three-fourths of an inch thick were placed horizontally close together and nailed to these studding on the east and west side of the same, the lower plank resting on the floor, thus making the thickness of the east wall 6 or 7 inches with the inner opening the width of the studding, 4 or 5 inches. The floor of the coal house was made of loose plank running north and south.

About a year or so before the explosion which caused the injuries complained of, a granitoid floor was placed over the entire area except that portion of it occupied by the coal house above described, thus making that part of the floor covered by the granitoid higher than the floor of the coal house, the thickness of the granitoid not being definitely disclosed by the record.

A short time before the explosion which caused the injuries complained of, the defendants Chambers & Walker entered into a contract with the defendant Arkansas Gas Co., to install on the premises at the Turf Exchange a gas generating machine to supply the entire Turf Exchange building with vapor illuminating gas generated from gasoline. This gas machine was installed by the gas company, and was accepted and put in operation by the defendants, Chambers & Walker, some four or five days before the explosion. This gasoline plant consisted of a small engine, generator, etc., a galvanized cylindrical iron storage tank for holding a supply of gasoline, about 18 inches in diameter, and about 6 feet 6 inches long, and would hold about 67 gallons of gasoline, with two small pipes connecting the engine and tank, one for the purpose of supplying the machine with gasoline to be converted into vapor illuminating gas, and the other to return from the machine to the tank any excess or surplus of gasoline conveyed by the other pipe from the tank to the machine; and also a line of pipe connecting the storage tank with a small iron receiving box placed in the sidewalk on Exchange Street outside of the retaining wall, and about 12 inches from said wall. The engine and generator were placed in a small house covered with sheet iron and located in the southeast corner of the area next to the rear wall of the Turf Exchange building and the wall of the building adjoining on the south. This little engine house rested on blocks 2 or 3 inches above the granitoid floor, thus leaving an open space underneath. The space between the west wall of the engine house and the east wall of the coal house was 3 feet 3 inches. A storage tank was placed horizontally between the engine house and the coal house by cutting through the granitoid floor and excavating the soil beneath, so as to let about half of the diameter of the tank rest below the surface. It was then covered with two layers of brick laid on edge in cement, and the whole plastered over with cement, thus making a smooth arched mound and rising about 12 inches above the floor which practically filled the space between the little engine house and the coal house. Near the south end of the tank there was inserted an upright iron pipe, called a T-pipe, 10 or 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Threads were cut on top of this pipe, and it was fitted with an iron cap, which could be easily screwed off or on the pipe. Inside the tank there was a float with an upright wooden stick less than an inch in diameter, which extended up through the upright T-pipe for the purpose of indicating the quantity of gasoline in the tank while it was being filled. With the cap of the upright T-pipe off, the end of this stick would rise as the gasoline was put into the tank. This pipe was to be kept closed except when it was desired to know how much gasoline was in the tank. The pipe connecting the storage tank with the receiving box placed near and outside the retaining wall was arranged as follows: the end of the line of pipe of the same inside diameter as the upright T-pipe on the storage tank was attached at right angles with the latter pipe where it joined the top of the tank and extended thence horizontally and obliquely with the tank from 3 to 3 1/2 feet to very near the outside east wall of the coal house, thence up vertically through several shelves 6 feet 3 inches, thence at right angles with the tank through the east wall of the coal house and extending on through the coal house and stone retaining wall to a point about 12 inches beyond the outer edge of said wall and about 12 inches below the surface of the sidewalk on Exchange Street, thence vertically about 6 inches into the bottom of the receiving box, and was there connected with a short receiving nipple or pipe about 5 inches long extending from the bottom of the receiving box to within about 2 inches of its top. This receiving box was about 6 inches long and 5 inches wide and 6 inches deep, with a hinged iron lid and lock for locking it when the box was not being used. The receiving box had also another open nipple or pipe extending through the bottom and extending up to within about 1 inch of the top of the box. The opening at the bottom of this nipple or pipe rested upon the earth immediately below the box. The box was sunk in the...

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