Accident raises concern about chutes

A pregnant woman fell through a Havre sidewalk into an underground coal chute, prompting Mayor Bob Rice to propose spending federal grant money to fill the 8-foot-deep chute.

The incident happened on July 2 on the sidewalk on the west side of Fourth Avenue between Second and Third streets. A 4-by-3-foot section of vaulted sidewalk embedded with square glass plates collapsed beneath Stacy Keller, sending her into the chute, Rice said.

Keller's two children ran into the nearby Havre Credit Bureau for help, and paramedics had to retrieve Keller and take her to the hospital, he said.

Rice did not...