News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-05-20
A Remarkable Storm.

Cincinnati, O., MAY 13.-The storm
last night, which did such fearful
work at Xenia, O., was far reaching.
1t is heard of in Illinois, through Ill
diana and Ohio, and at Winchester,
Va. Here there has been an unusual
electrical disturbance for the past
three nights. On Monday night
there was almost uninterrupted light
ming from IL p. m. until a. m. On
Tuesday night similar condition eX-
listed, accompanied by heavy rains and
hail, the latter of very narrow range.
Last night there was another electrl-
cal storm, with wind, heavy rain and
hail. The Xenia storm, however, was
much more furious.
At Springfield the flood was of
naarly equal volume, but the drain
age was better. East High Street
Bridge was undermined and is mass
ofruins. In the eastern and southeast
ern portions Of the city many fami-
lies were driven from their homes by
the encroaching food. Dozens of
bridges over the streams were washed
away. The losses cannot be estimat-
ed, but will be exceedingly heavy. At
Lebanon, O., the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, the Lebanon House, grist
mill, warehouse and several residences
were unroofed. Nearly every rail-
road across tie State was crippled,
and some will require several days
for repairs.
Columbus, O., May ia spec
ial from Xenia to the State Journal
says About o'clock last evening
terrible clouds were seen gathering,
and terrific lightning was followed by
peals of thunder. This lasted until
9 o'clock, when an extraordinary clap
of thunder seemed to open the gates
and the rain fell in torrents. The
people living in houses on Water St.
escaped by every way possible.
The spout struck the houses and tore
them to pieces as if they were shells
A resident of the street states that
within two minutes after the clap OF
thunder he stood in water 10 his waist,
he being about % yards from the
creek. When the waters reached the
residence of Aaron Ferguson it was
swept awsy with nine inmates and
lodged against bridge, where they
were afterward rescued. The next
damage was at the coal yard of Sam
uel Clark. in which was located a
tenement house occupied by family
of nine. A dozen houses, occupied
mostly by colored people, were here
swept away and horses were lost by
the dozen. The loss of property is
great, whole lumber yards and all
the bridges are gone. The scenes
in the devastated district are indie
scribable. The Council has appro-
priated $1,000 for immediate use in
the burial of the victims. A private
subscription has already reached into
the thousands. All aid possible is
needed from every source. The num-
Der of dead whose bodies have been
found is 25, with IL still missing.
Dayton, Ohio, is isolated. A
storm of wind, rain and hail struck
there at s o'clock Wednesday night.
The Miami river became a mighty
flood, rising nine feet in three hours,
inundating fifty acres of houses in the
fourth ward, drowning horses and
COWS, running merchandise in cellars,
bridges in all directions swept away,
farm buildings and dwellings demol-
ished and all kind of crops totally
ruined. The greatest destruction is
in track east from the Big Miami to
Little Miami. Paramount is a total
wreck. The church at Beavertown
was demolished a1d dwellings were
twisted from their foundations. At
Shaker Village, three miles east, many
buildings varo unroofed, barns blown
down -eattle-inlaF A north
bound freight train on the Cincinna-
ii, Hamilton and Dayton road dashed
into a washout at Possum run, five
miles south of Dayton and the thirty
ton locomotive carried $50 feet down
the mighty torrentbefore sinking, then
rolled over and over. At daylight a
farmer, mile across the river, no.
ticed signals of distress, and rescued
the freight crew from tree tops.
At Chester, ILL.,, houses were IN
rooted, and in some cases completely
demolished. Fences, trees and shrubs
were torn away, and the air was full
of debris. The government fleet
lying up there was blown from its
moorings and part of it carried down
the river. Small water crafts were
torn from their anchorage and carried
away. The Buena Vista school house,
residences and stores in all parts of
the city were badly damaged.