Looking back: Boy accidentally kills cousin and Pocatello locals miraculously survive crash
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IDAHO FALLS — EastIdahoNews.com is looking back at what life was like during the week of Aug. 8 to Aug. 14 in east Idaho history.
1900-1925
ST. ANTHONY — A St. Anthony teenager accidentally shot and killed his cousin, the Sugar City Times reported on Aug. 14, 1913.
Kenney Worrell, 16, and Herbert Worrell, were out hunting when the tragedy happened. They were in a boat going down the Teton River when Kenney saw a hawk on a post.
“The boy raised his gun and aimed at the bird and the boat tilted a little. As the gun discharged, the bullet went through Herbert’s head, killing him instantly,” the Sugar City Times explained.
The boys were the sons of Mr. and Mrs. W.K. Worrell and Mr. and Mrs. J.B. Worrell. The paper noted the Worrell families were highly respected in the community.
CLARIFICATION: While accurate to the report in the Sugar City Times, the Worrell family disputes this historical account and has presented strong evidence that it was Kenny Worrell that was shot and killed, not Herbert Worrell.
1926-1950
RIGBY — Four Jefferson County men were sailors on the same destroyer operating with the battle fleet in the Pacific, The Rigby Star announced on Aug. 9, 1945.
The local paper said having four men from the same town on the same destroyer was “believed to be a record for a small county and a small, although mighty ship.”
The four eastern Idahoans serving together aboard the U.S.S. Strong were Archie Hayes, Howard Shaffer, Ronald Kinghorn and Bernell “Stub” Dahle. They left Rigby on May 3, 1944, to serve in the Navy.
1951-1975
HAMER — A fire broke out on a ranch in Hamer and destroyed thousands of dollars in feed grain and other farm items.
The Rigby Star wrote on Aug. 8, 1968, the “fire of unknown origin” happened on Ted Oram’s property. A son, Richard Oram, and a grandson, Jay Aitken, were home when the fire was discovered.
“The Mud Lake Fire Department and the Snake River Mutual Fire truck at Rigby, with the aid of neighbors, controlled the blaze from spreading to a nearby Grade A Dairy Barn, where 80 head of cattle had been feeding, but were turned out when the blaze was discovered,” the article mentioned.
The total loss was estimated at $2,500 and was partially covered by insurance.
1976-2000
POCATELLO — A Franklin County sheriff deputy said two Pocatello men could “count their lucky stars” after being in a one-vehicle accident.
On Aug. 11, 1977, the Preston Citizen reported the driver, Wynn J. Krause, 30, and passenger, JB Walton, 30, were in a 1977 GMC four-wheel drive pickup traveling at a “high rate of speed.”
“(The truck) went to the right side of the highway, back to the left, into a burrow pit, hit a ditch at which time both men were thrown from the pickup, rolled end over end, went back to the left and ended in a traffic lane of the highway,” the article stated.
The vehicle was “totally engulfed in flames” when it landed on the highway and burned for 15-20 minutes following the crash.
Krause and Walton were transported by ambulance to Franklin County Memorial Hospital. The paper said both men were injured but in “good condition.”
Citations were pending following the investigation.