River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1877-06-14
The Death Dealing Tornado.


&
Nj Carmel, III, Correspondence, St Louis Globe
Heavy, dark clouds banked upon the
western horizon yesterday gave promise
of continuance of the rain which had
fallen at intervals during the day The
hour, as near as can be ascertained. was
j :35 in the afternoon. Men who were
looking to the west said There is big
rain coming on over there" Suddenly a
strange commotion was noticed in the
cloudy banks. The air was filled with a
mighty noise, like the rolling of waves
high up on the sea shore. The terrified
inhabitants saw a mighty cone. 1t must
have been 1000 feet in height, and bore
the appearance of cloud wmrling anG
spinning towards the town. 1t first was
noticed at distance of mile-and-a-quar-
ter west of the centre of the town. 1t was
a cyclone and the bosom of destruction
passed through the town, leaving a trail
of death and ruin behind it like unto the
marks of the hand of 0mnipotence when
raised in anger. The air was filled with
wrecks of houses, stores, and missiles of
every sort. The crash of falling buildings
was heard ON every hand.
The death-dealing cone passed through
the town. making its terrible mark east
on Fourth street, the prettiest ofthe streets
of this bright little town. In two min
utes all was over. The cyclone seeming
liz having exhausted the vials of its wrath
on Mt Carmel, passed through the town,
| and at its eastern verge wentupwards and
ceased to work harm. The roaring noise
died away, and the rain fell in binding
torrents. The streets filled with people,
and shouts of terror and excitement rent
the air on every hand. Nothing could be
seen but devastation. The streets were
impossible by reason Of the debris. Build
ings continued to crash and fall Men
and women, crazed with fear, were panic
stricken. School children. tremendously
delivered from the jaws of death, were
wildly searching for their parents Groans
On every hand told of strong men in agony.
Horses darted wildly past, riderless, filled
with the terror of the scene. Suddenly
above all rose the terrible cry of " Fire :"
and the lurid flames bursting wildly from
the ruins of what FIVE minutes before had
been the finest and and most substantial
business block in town, verified the alarm
This was the time for heroes TO come to
the front, and they responded.
Men, bleeding and wounded, hurried
to the scene. One man, cooler than the
rest, remembering that Mount Carmel
was without fire-extinguishing apparatus,
ran to the depot. He telegraphed to
Nincennes: "Our town is in ruins and in
flames Send us aid" Within ten min
utes from the receipt ofthe telegram the
Vincennes steam fire engine was at the
Nincennes depot. 4 special train ever
Cairo & NinceDnes Road was hastily con
tributed. The distance TO the luckless
town was twenty-four miles. A ride of
thirty-seven wild exciting minutes brought
the fircmen and their engines TO the
scene. and there they worked as only
brave men can. Three large brick build
ings had been wrecked by the cyclone.
Combustibe material had started the
fire. "There arc men under these ruins"
said the Mayor of Mt. Carmel, who was on
the ground. The men redoGbled their
exertions, and succeeded in combining and
reducing the flames. In dozen other To-
calities men with axes and bars were cut
ting and hauling away the ruins of build
lngs, recovering bodies, rescuing the in
iured. 1t was a terrible night. and the
rain continued to fall. Torches and
ponnreS were lighted, and IN their
glare the search for the dead and the
buried living was continued through
the night When exhaustion at a late
hour babe cessation of labor, the grim
ed and sooty men told each other in
lowered tones that the death-roll footed
up twelve, and that it would be increased
when the ruins of the wrecked town were
more fully explored. The gray and
gloomy morning broke upon a scene of
desolation and destruction. 4 hundred
dwellings stood wrecked and battered,
eloquent evidences of the force of the Wis
itation; twelve homes were in mourning
and IN fifty more, friends waited upon
the injured and wounded and prayed that
they might be spared. Mt. Carmel is one
of those bright, cheerful little towns pc
culiar to Illinois. has population of
about three thousand orderly. well-cou-