The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1878-04-23
A TORNADO.
The Cottonwood Valley Swept
by q Terrible Storm.
4 Number Of Persons Killed and
Over Seventy Houses
Destroyed.
Fearful Scenes OF Mothers Saving
Their Children and Husbands
Protecting Their Homes.

Emporia News-Extra, April Il.
The tornado first attracted atten-
ton here about 4:30 p. NJ. when gen
eral apprehension was excited by the
threatening appearance of the sky. es-
pecially in the southwest. where e.
gantic, greenish colored cloud massed
up, swelling and writhing. and steadily
increasing IN bulk and apparent soliii-
ty until it looked like
AN IMMENSE AVALANCHE
ready to overwhelm the earth beneath.
| To the east and north of this terrible
cloud the sky was comparatively
clear, the clouds there seeming to 60
northwest, from whence rolled, along
and across the western horizon, a CEN
tinuous volume of cloud which ell
tered into and was absorbed by the
growing mass in the southwest. until
it seemed a. if everything in the sky
above US was being whirled toward
and sucked into that gloomy monster.
This impressive atmospherical display
went on for about fifteen minutes,
when a tremendous though distant
roar began to be heard. approaching
nearer every moment, and a heavy
dash of wind and rain came from the
south. The storm had reached us,
the rain shutting out q further view
of the sky. The first wind and rain
almost instantly swung round and
came from the east. and lasted about
three minutes, when perfect lull of
about two minutes ensued. This lull
was suddenly broken by blast of
wind, rain and very heavy hail from
the northwest and north. This was
the storm. in all its strength. and it
ragged With terrific fury FIR a full half
hour before it abated in the least, and
then kept up a very heavy rain for an
other half an hour, the latter part
coming from the east and south.
1t was truly.
ATERRIBLE STORM,
even to those whose houses stood with
out injury-while to those whose
houses were blown to pieces, exposing
them to the full force of the raging
elements, the experience of that hour
can never be forgotten. The rain
was the Heaviest our Oldest settlers
have known-coming down like a
cataract, and flooding the ground
inches deep in q few minutes. 1t pen
trated roofs and joints heretofore proof
in all storms, and ~ the heavY hail
water deluged rooms in a few mo-
ments. The hail-stones were i'm
mense in size and the wind hurled
them with tremendous force-most
all glass in northern windows unpro-
tected by blinds, being shattered.
Many of the hail-stones that fell
south of the Cottonwood, where the
tornado was more severe than in the
city, are said to have heen as large
as goose eggs, knocking holes through
shingles and siding large enough to
put ones fist through. The sufferings
of numerous families whose houses
were so suddenly blown to pieces,
leaving their inmates. men, women
and children entirely unprotected
from the pelting Of this enormous
hail as we'll as the food of water and
the force of wind that threw them from |
their feet to the sodded earth, can b.
imagined when this storm kept up its
full fury for more than half an hour.
The houses destroyed were generally
lifted up in the air. carried
Of feet and then dashed roof
or side first to the ground. SCATTERING
them entirely to pieces, scattering tim.
bers and boards for hundreds of feet
and in some cases for more
THAN HALF A NILE,
and of course destroying all the fur
niture and other property within
them. On Phenis and Dry creeks,
and along the south bank of the Cot
between these creeks, very
arge trees were torn and twisted to
pieces, and the prairie is covered with
fragments of houses, and nothing
,eemed capable of withstanding its
,wful power only the fences. The
gale was simply terrible; wonder is
hat SO few people were killed by the
alling of their dwellings, or that
nose who were exposed to the
lail were not beaten senseless to the
arth. y
How women and children lived,
Is many did, through this fearful hour,
With nothing to shield them from the :
lail, is unacountable. Two children !
we're, in fact, killed 10 this way.
Orchards on Phenis and Dry creeks
Tere badly injured. the trees not torn 2
own being denuded of blossoms. Fall /.
sheat was badly broken and driven
nto the ground, and will be much in. q
nrej.
The path of the tornado. where il .
'as strong enough to destroy houses, = =
as not very wide. 1t began, SO far :,
3 We now know, 10 Chase county, :.
nd then appears to have lifted into Il
he ar and struck the earth again at = =
acobs' creek, 10 this county, and kept : :
n puinO east until II reached NJ