Looking back: Five struck dead by lightning while attending church girls camp and wolves escape zoo enclosure

IDAHO FALLS — EastIdahoNews.com is looking backmost astatine what life was for illustration during nan week of July 29 to Aug. 4 successful eastbound Idaho history.

1900-1925

ST. ANTHONY — A man was taken to nan infirmary aft his ft was “almost trim successful 2 pinch an ax,” The Teton Peak-Chronicle reported connected July 30, 1903.

Roy Porter, who had a homestead adjacent nan “Osborn ford successful Island Park,” was nan man progressive successful nan accident. Dr. Middleton and Dr. Harshbarger helped Porter, who was recovering “very nicely.” It’s not clear what Porter was doing erstwhile nan incident happened.

“The large toed was almost severed from nan ft and it became basal to drill a spread successful he severed bony and spike it together pinch a metallic spike aft which nan gastly coiled was stitched together,” nan insubstantial wrote. “This is nan first cognition of this quality ever attempted successful this portion of nan country.”

1926-1950

IDAHO FALLS — A two-year-old kid miraculously survived aft falling successful a mini irrigation ditch filled pinch water, nan Idaho Falls Post Register reported connected Aug. 1, 1933.

Genevieve McCabe was pulled from nan ditch adjacent her location “in clip to forestall drowning.” The kid wandered from nan location and erstwhile group realized she was missing, they instantly started looking for her.

She was recovered successful a shallow ditch by her brother, Arthur. She had been nether h2o astir 5 minutes, according to nan report.

“The kid was taken instantly taken to nan infirmary wherever efforts to revive her were successful,” nan insubstantial stated. “She was released from nan infirmary Tuesday morning.”

1951-1975

DRIGGS — Four teenage girls and 1 female were killed instantly by a lightning bolt while connected a hike adjacent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Darby Girls Camp, nan Idaho Falls Post Register reported connected Aug. 2, 1951.

The victims were Carol Engstrom, Betty Kearney, Mary Dee Severson, Bernice Malone and Mrs. R.A. Holst. All but 1 of nan 5 victims were from nan LDS Idaho Falls Fifth ward. The Post Register reported 9 group were hospitalized, astir of them being teenage girls who suffered “painful burns connected nan backmost and arms.”

The calamity happened successful nan mountains eastbound of Driggs. The article explains a statement of hikers from nan Darby Girls Camp were huddled underneath a ample character adjacent nan rima of nan Wind Caves, a scenic spot two-and-a-half miles eastbound of nan campy “higher successful nan mountains.”

Originally a group of 42 hikers started retired but 5 of nan girls turned backmost early during nan hike, leaving 37 who continued on.

“After coming retired of nan caves astir 1 p.m., campy leaders reported an electrical large wind thundered into nan mountains and nan group ran for nan screen of immoderate ample trees,” nan insubstantial mentioned. “Two of nan girls remained abstracted from nan statement … but astir of nan group huddled nether 1 of 2 ample trees adjacent nan entranceway to nan caves.”

Fred Miller, Driggs scouter and nan only man successful nan hiking party, had conscionable advised nan girls to “get distant from nan character during nan storm” erstwhile “the bolt fell pinch a crackling crescendo … sidesplitting nan 5 outright and sprawling respective different stunned hikers complete nan upland side.”

Miller, who was “stunned and burned himself,” “aroused himself to use artificial respiration connected six unconscious hikers.” He revived them and dispatched 2 girls backmost to campy to get help.

Little Irene Malone, astatine center, weeps pinch sorrow laden abandon, aft proceeding nan news that her sister had been killed successful nan tragedy. Geraldine Biddulph, left, Joy Phippen, right, themselves crying, effort to comfortableness her. | Courtesy Post Register

Dr. Gordon Jensen, Teton valley’s sole physician, and nan Teton County Sheriff’s Office “immediately group retired for nan segment of nan tragedy.” A “hardy group of leather faced ranchers” helped Jensen, 35, arsenic he treated nan injured connected nan hillside astatine nan segment of nan calamity earlier placing them successful stretchers to beryllium carried backmost to nan campy wherever ambulances were waiting.

It continued, “Cars could only get wrong astir 2 miles from nan calamity tract and 2 jeeps made it up a unsmooth hewn way different mile. Only horses and men stepping could make nan past tourturous mile from nan extremity of nan way up nan conifer covered mountains.”

As “anxious Idaho Falls relatives of nan girls” made their measurement to nan camp, an “evacuation and accusation center” was group up astatine nan Driggs LDS religion building.

“As nan first autobus load of girls rumbled into town, nan milling crowd astatine nan Driggs LDS tabernacle grounds, surged pinch muffled cries toward nan autobus door,” nan insubstantial said. “When nan girls tumbled from nan bus, they were met pinch shrieks of joyousness — aliases by agonized moans by those whose searching eyes had not recovered a loved one.”

The insubstantial said this was “Teton Valley’s worst calamity successful caller years.”

1976-2000

POCATELLO — A wolf astatine nan Ross Park Zoo successful Pocatello escaped and attacked a six-year-old girl, nan Idaho Falls Post Register reported connected July 30, 1977.

Police reports said nan girl, Kasi Croft, was sitting connected nan crushed adjacent immoderate vertebrate cages erstwhile 2 timber wolves, a antheral and a female, sewage retired of their enclosure arsenic a parkland worker was cleaning it. The worker shouted nan wolves were loose.

“Kasi’s father, Ron Croft, said he told his children to stay quiet,” nan article reads. “One of nan wolves, a gray-white male, ran on a paved walkway toward nan vertebrate cages. Kasi was successful nan animal’s way and was attacked and pinned down.”

Ron and a parkland attraction worker, Bruce Tullotson, “kicked and beat” nan wolf, forcing it distant from nan girl.

“Gates starring distant from nan area were quickly unopen down, confining nan wolf,” nan Post Register explained. “Park labor lured him backmost into nan cage aft astir 5 minutes.”

The female wolf was recaptured successful nan park’s precocious level by constabulary and zoo personnel. Zoo foreman Ray England said each animals successful nan zoo had shots and location was nary chance of rabies.

“The incident occurred erstwhile a partition separating nan wolf and carnivore cages grounded to adjacent each nan measurement arsenic a parkland worker entered nan cage to cleanable it,” zoo officials stated. “The wolves were driven into a carnivore cage, but a magnitude of concatenation caught connected a crank controlling nan door, leaving it partially open.”

The worker said he saw nan wolves crawl done nan opening and tally from nan cage but that he didn’t person clip to adjacent nan doorway properly.

“The wolves ran past respective different bystanders earlier nan antheral wolf reached nan small girl,” nan insubstantial said.

The injured woman was listed successful adjacent information nan time aft nan incident. She was being treated for lacerations connected nan head, shoulders and hand.