The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1886-04-22
THE WORST CYCLONE YET.
Two Towns observation-disclosures of Dead
and Manned Scattered In the Wreck
Scenes of Desolatlon and Misery.

Two IownS DestfOyett-SCOrc6 OIL OeaQ
and Manned Scattered In the Wreck
Scenes of Desolatlon and Misery.
ST. PAUL, MINI, April IA, 1885,
This afternoon, at twenty minutes past
four, with hardly q moments notice, a
cyclone swept through the little town of
St. Cloud, on the Manitoba road, seventy.
FIVE miles north of this city, and levelled
to the ground half hundred houses and
MANNED large number of people.
Three miles away the storm struck the
little village of Sauk Rapids, and the
terrible destruction was repeated, only on
a smaller scale.
The names of twenty six persons who
we're killed are known. Among them
are three women and eleven children; (;
John Kinard, County Auditor; Geo.
Lindsay, County Treasurer; P. Carpep-
ter, Clerk of Court; P. Beauhre, judge
of Probate Court, and Edgar Hill, Pres.
ident of German American national
bank.
The storm came from the southwest,
and its path lay between the residence
and the business portions. Everything
in the way was swept out of existence,
and the sweep is as clear cut and as we'll
defined as that of a moving machine in
field of Grain. The first building
struck was the freight depot of the Man
itoba road, which was completely demol-
ished. twenty-five freig cars stand.
ing on the tracks were blown to pieces
and scattered over the yards. The storm
was over in twenty minutes.
The day had been sultry, with frequent
showers of rain. About four o'clock an
intensely black cloud appeared in the
southwest, and few minutes later that
peculiar moaning, whistling sound in
the air, which invariably comes with
such storms, was heard /; but before the
terrified people could gain places of
safety the work of death had begun. A
few timid families had gone into their
cellars al the first approach of the storm,
and these escaped injury but most Of
the inhabitants of the place were stand
ing about in their door yards watching
its approach and did not realize its dead
ly character until too late.
cas- soon as the news reached this city
a special train, bearing twelve surgeons
and a large number of citizens, started
for the scene. The train dispatcher at
st. Cloud has just telegraphed that thirty
bodies have been carried past his Office
and the loss of life is very large. The
citizens are paralyzed with horror and
have as yet begun no systematic work of
relief No estimate of property loss has
vet been received. The relief train with
the doctors has just arrived there, and
parties on board have wired that the full
extent of the damage and loss of life
cannot be ascertained for many hours, as
everything is in the utmost confusion.
ST. PAUL, April 15.-Reports of the
cyclone at ST. Cloud, Sauk Rapids, Rye
Station and other points in the vicinity
last night and early this morning were
not exaggerated. Just enough houses are
left in Sauk Rapids to form fringe
around the village limits. The debris is
not piled in heaps, but scattered far and
wide. The sign "Sauk Rapids" on the
| the Manitoba depot, and basket full of
school books were found in Rye Station,
fifteen miles distant.
The revised estimates of the killed and
wounded are: St. Cloud, Is killed 40
injured; Sauk Rapids, 80 killed 100 in
iured; Rye Station, % killed, number OF
injured as yet unknown.
ST.. CLOUD, MINI, April l5.-A few
minutes after o'clock yesterday after
noon the skies became overcast with a
dark cloud, and great black mass rose
over the hills southwest of the city, and
came with terrible velocity to the western
outskirts in direct line for the Manitoba
freight yards. The clouds hung low and
rolled over and over like smoke over
battlefield, and we're accompanied by a
loud roaring and cracking sound that re-
sembled confagration in its fury. The
cloud was funnel.shaped, and the point
dragged along the ground like the tail OF
huge aerial beast, lashing everything
that came in its path into atoms. The
citizens had hardly time to flee to their
cellars and seek other points of refuge
before the air filled with flying boards,
shingles, bricks and other debris that was
strewn over the country and piled in per
miscuous heaps. Itcame from the south
east and moved in northeasterly direc-
ton until it reached the river, where its
course was diverted and followed the
river banks until it reached Sauk Rapids,
where it diverged to the left, passing
directly throug b the centre of that town.
The portion of St. Cloud struck by
the cyclone vas the southwestern section,
and was the residence portion occupied
BY the laboring class of people, the ma:
jority of them being foreigners employed
on the railroads. Their dwellings were
light built houses and became easy prey.
1t had hardly begun its terrible work
before it was flushed, and the scene that
greeted the eyes of those who had
escaped its fury was one that caused the
stoutest heart to shudder. The cries aud
shrieks of the wounded rent the air, and
the ground was strewn with the bodies
of the dead. Among them were stalwart
men, weak women, and weaker children.
| The citizens almost to a man rushed to
the demolished districts, and summoning
physicians began their work of rescuing
those who were still living from beneath
the piles of dirt and fallen buildings.
After dark the scene was ghastly one.
Rain poured down in torrents and hum
dreds of men wandered over the ground, /,
many carrying lanterns, searching for
bodies among the ruins. The hotel lob.
bies were filled with excited citizens,
many of whom yet suspected that some
portion of their families or their friends
had fallen victims to the terrible dlsas-
ter.
SAUK RAPIDS, MINI, April 49,
The cyclone struck this city shortly after
4 o'clock yesterday afternoon, and in
lust six minutes the best portion of the
town was in ruins. Not a single business
house was left standing on Main street.
MANY residences were demolished.
What was once the centre of the town is
now covered with debris-timber, doors,
pieces of furniture, etc. Only the city
hotel remains intact. The Northern
Pacific depot is literally blown away and
large number of freight cars overturned
upon the tracks.
The total loss of property is not less
than 100000, without dollar of cyclone
insurance. The town is we'll nigh ruined
The living are caring for the wounded as
we'll as possible, and the physicians from
St. Paul, Minneapolis and Brainerd are
in attendance.
ST. CLOUD, MINI, April 15.-On the
arrival of the train yesterday with the
surgeons, work was at once begun to re.
lieye the wounded. Eighteen dead were