Daily Kennebec journal., 1883-02-12
the Angry WATERS.
Recurring Floods Again Inundate
the West.
Railroads Drowned Out-Gas Works
Submerged and Water Supply
Cut OF,
Rivers are Still Rising and the Pros
poets are Alarming.

CINcINSATI, Feb 10.
The river at midnight was 50 feet and
inches high and still rising. 1t is raining
steadily. 1t is uncertain whether the next
change of the river will be up or down.
CINCINNATI, Feb H.
The citv is in CONSERVATION on account OF
the great rise in the river. Thus far. and
what is yet expected to come, has risen 62
feet and two and one-half inches. This after
noon it is rising two inches hourly, and des-
perate efforts are being made to save mer-
chandise in the lower part of the city. Ad-
vices from other parts indicate the heavy
rise continuing.
At Cincinnati, Covington and Newport. at
o'clock tonight, the water stands at 6l feet
inches, and rising nearly two inches hourly.
Thousands of people crowd on the bridge to
witness the flood. Three feet more of water
is expected All the transfer wagons in the
city are employed, removing goods from dan
ger. The suspension bridge is lined with
wagons, taking leaf tobacco over to COving-
ton The depth of water which they pass
through when going over the suspension
bridge is over the axles, and passengers be-
tween Covington and Cincinnati are COM
PEELED to cross the water in boats. The steam
ferry and street railroad communication be-
tween here and the Kentucky side of the river
is cut off entirely. In Newport, the barracks
are flooded. Nearly two square miles of the
city is flooded, and people have been taking
coal and provisions in boats to the inhabit-
ants, ard delivering them through the second
and third story windows. All the houses and
factories along TIE entire river front in Cow
ington are flooded, and the water is in the
of II FOR y,ilos of
the river front in Cincinnati is under water
Along the landing, the flood is up to the Sec
ond and third stories of many buildings. All
railway freight business. and nearly all ex-
press business west and north, is stopped.
The Ohio & Mississippi Railway, transfers
passengers by omnibus four miles down the
river, thence by steamer, and makes cOnnec-
tons with the Aurora, Indiana & Cincinnati
Railroad. The Indianapolis, st. Louis &
Chicago Railroad uses the Cincinnati, Ham
ilton Dayton lines to reach its own lines in
Indiana.
The Cincinnati, Washington & Baltimore
passengers go out at Harrisburg depot If
the present rate of rise continues all these
lines will have to transfer at Cumminsville
tomorrow morning. The Little Mama di
vision of the Pittsburg. Cincinnati & st.
Louis and all roads south of the Ohio river
remain intact and are likely to continue to do
so. All the mill creek valley for miles north
from the Ohio is a broad sea. In this city
from Pearl street down to the river front the
greatest excitement prevails. The fire de-
partment is pumping out the cellars, trying to
enable merchants to save their goods. The
river this morning invaded a house adjacent
the suspension bridge, where unslacked lime
was storted, along with quantities of resin.
The heat from the lime set the resin on fire.
The fire department has been working at this
fire all day. 1t continues to burn, but violent.
On Walnut street uf to Fourth street the en-
tire sidewalks are covered with packages of
sugar and groceries which has been hastily
removed from the cellars, and the work of
removing continues tonight as rapidly as men
can accomplish it. The damage to the goods
in cellars on Pearl street is much feared.
Cincinnati stock yards are flooded and stock
trains cannot move in any direction, and all
business will be suspended until after the
danger is past. At half past eight tonight it
was expected every minute that the gas
ligth would be extinguished, only few
inches more of rise will bring about this
result.
Later-At 9 o'clock the gas works was
flooded and only enough gas was left to last
through the night. The pressure is so weak
that the gas will not burn in many places.
The water supply is also in danger and only
one engine at the pumping works is able to
work. Its capacity as reported last was 1O,-
100000 gallons per day, while the daily con-
sumption is 100000. 1t will require a
rise of four feet more to disable this one.
The coal fleets are believed to be safe: they
are guarded by steamers ready to render as
sistance if the lines part, but if the wind
rises it is not thought that any can be saved.
The weather is still warm and the snow
is melting with occasional light rains. Ad-
vices from the above indicate that the rise
rise will continue at least "a hours longer
The Commercial Gazette's specials report
three inches of rain at Parkersburg and the
river rising The Little Kanawha is rising
an inch hourly. Marietta reports "a inches
of rain and the river rising slowly.
Portsmouth reports heavy rain for "a
hours until noon. The river is rising slowly
and is foot higher than on Friday night and
is rising two inches an hour. At Pittsburg
it is raining and the weather is warm and
the snow is melting and the river rising
Maysville reports the river rising two and a
half inches an hour and many business
houses already have cellars flooded.
The excitement here tonight continues
The stage of the water is taken and every
fees. Crowds are still going to the waters $
edge where workmen are busy in removing
goods. In some of the churches tonight no
exercises were held on account of the failure
Of gas light
The Ohio river at midnight is 62 feet
inches high, and is rising one inch and half
hourly. Lawrenceburg, Ind, 90 miles below
here, is entirely inundated no spot of ground
will be visible in it tomorrow they are
isolated, and cannot be reached by rail, and
steamers cannot land there. They heve tele-
phoned here tonight for bread. which will
have to be conveyed to them by skiffs no
wind is stirring at midnight.
PITTsBURG, Feb IL.
1t is very probable that this section will be
visited BY another flood within the next "a
hours. At 1890 P. NJ. tonight there was
14A feet Of water in Monongahela river and
it was rising inches an hour, while dispatch
es from points above report the river rising
at the rate of Is TO 20 inches an hour. 1t has
rained here for Is hours.