Looking back: Boy nearly dies from nose bleed, teen saves baby from drowning and motorists start fires - East Idaho News
Looking Back

Looking back: Boy nearly dies from nose bleed, teen saves baby from drowning and motorists start fires

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IDAHO FALLS — EastIdahoNews.com is looking back at what life was like during the week of July 11 to July 17 in east Idaho history.

1900-1925

POCATELLO — An 11-year-old boy had a three-hour-long bloody nose and “came near bleeding to death,” according to The Pocatello Tribune.

On July 13, 1902, Mr. and Mrs. P.M. Larson and their family went to Pocatello to attend a church convention. Shortly after arriving, their son’s nose started to bleed. When the blood “failed to stop running at the ordinary length of time,” the parents called a doctor.

“Dr. Bean pronounced the case hemorrhage of the nose or acute congestion of the brain, and he says it is the most severe case that has come within his practice,” the article reads.

The family drove 35 miles to get to the convention, and it was believed the hemorrhage started because of the heat and the long ride.

“The boy bled for three solid hours and when the flow was finally stopped, (he) was in a very exhausted condition,” The Pocatello Tribune mentioned. “The boy is gradually recovering from the effects of the hemorrhage.”

1926-1950

IONA — A boy scout made a “heroic rescue” after saving a baby from drowning, The Rigby Star’s July 11, 1929, newspaper explained.

Kay Steele, 13, lived on a farm near Iona. He was near the canal that carried water to the farm when he saw clothing floating down the stream. Steele went to the edge of the canal and “immediately decided that there was something in the clothing.”

“He jumped into the canal without wasting any time,” The Rigby Star wrote. “The canal is about 4 feet deep and 20 feet wide at this place.”

When Steele got to the clothing, he discovered three-year-old Tommy Bill Lee with his face down in the water. The child lived across the road from the Steele farm. He had been crossing on a narrow plank over the canal when he fell into the water. Lee floated downstream for nearly 150 yards before being rescued.

“He got the child to the shore and managed to get most of the water out of his body,” the article states. “Steele is a tenderfoot in the Iona troop and has not had a great deal of training. His work in rescuing the baby deserves a great deal of consideration.”

1951-1975

HEISE — Motorists were to blame for two brush fires starting near Heise, The Rigby Star said on July 12, 1951.

The first fire grew to an acre in size before being put out by the Heise District Forest Ranger and other Forest Service personnel. The second fire covered a distance of nearly 100 feet but was stopped by “several alert Sunday drivers and local residents.”

Ranger Cuskelly, who helped with the mop-up of the second fire, praised those who helped control a “potentially dangerous fire within five minutes of the time it started.”

Due to the lack of evidence, no one was apprehended for starting the fires. Cuskelly reminded people it’s unlawful to leave a fire unattended or to throw lighted materials from a car during fire season in Idaho.

1976-2000

POCATELLO — A Chubbuck dog catcher was in the intensive care ward at Bannock Memorial Hospital following a car accident, the Idaho State Journal wrote on July 16, 1976.

Merlon Phillips, 45, was the driver of a motorcycle that ran into the rear of a Jeep driven by Martin Honmichl, 19. Officers said Honmichl was waiting for a truck in front of him to turn left when Phillips hit his car.

Phillips sustained a leg and head injuries, police said. No citations had been issued and the crash remained under investigation by Chubbuck Police at the time the article was printed.

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