RECORD QUARRY FEAT

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 25, 13 February 1937, Page 11

RECORD QUARRY FEAT

1 ,000,000 Tons Blasted at Once \ *

A block of white marble weighing 1,000,000 tons, and equal in size to St. Paul's Cathedral, was blasted out of the hillside at the famous Carrara quarries in Italy, This f eat ' of , engineering is -claimed as a world record. It certainly is the biggest picc© of marble ever dislodged in the history of Italian mining. Seven hnndred had worked for more than a year preparing for tho "exploBion. A novel system was followed. The huge block was the apex of a spur ot the marble mountains. A cuttmg of 300,000 sqnare feet was hewn round the hill nntil the summit took the form of a pine tree. Three charges of dynamite were laid. One was to demolish simultaneously the supporting props. The other two were laid by the stem of the colossal "tree." Seven and a half tons of high explolsive was placed on one side

of the base, and four tons on the; other. From a mile and a half away the explosives were electrically detonated. , The explosion sounded like the upheaval of Vimy Eidge. Through the ecreen of thick dust the whole summit was seen as if suspended for an ihstanfc above the mountain before crashing down in a tremendous landslide. For two hours afterwards the engineers scouted round to see that all was safe. And there lay the greatest monolith of pure white marble ever seen. The explosion was heard fifty miles away. The work of cutting up the detached sector will give employment to mora than 3000 workmen for a year. Signor Mussolini, on receipt of the news of the tsuccessful issue of this feat, telegraphed his cnncrratulations to all con* c.erned,