The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1886-10-21
A DISASTROUS STORM.
More Than 100 Lives Lost aud Great Destruction
or Property.


OF Property.
Last week large portion of the country was
swept by a tornado of extraordinary fury and
magnitude.
Beginning in the Southwest on Monday il
piled up the waters of the Gulf. wrecking the
town of Sabine Pass, Tex, injuring the famous
Mississippi jetties and drowning at different
points more than 100 people. Then il struck
Northward and wrought havoc among the
shipping of the great lakes and did great dam
age in many Of the cities of the Lake region.
The greatest disaster in the track of the
STORM was at Sabine Pass, where there was
great loss Of life aud enormous destruction Of
property. Piled up from the Gulf the waters
began 10 invade the town about o'clock Tues
day afternoon aud rose with unprecedented
rapidly. The citizens of the doomed place
did not realize their imminent danger until it
was too late 10 escape. When safety by flight
was found 10 be out of the question the people
who were SO situated that they could do SO
sought refuge in houses and resorts such as they
considered safe. The water kept rising, and
between and 4 o'clock the smaller houses be-
gan 10 yield TO the Tesistless force of the waves
which not only moved them from their foun-
dations. but turned them over on their sides
and tops A little later the larger houses began
TO give way and death by drowning seemed in
store for every person in the place. With the
yielding of the smaller houses several persons
who had remained in them were drowned, aud
when the residences and business places began
10 crumble the fatalities were greatly increased.
Here about 20 people were drowned out Of 200
in the town, and scarcely house was left
standing.
The loss of property along the Cameron Par
ish Gulf coast and for some distance west Of
Sabine Pass by the storm on Tuesday night
was fearful. The mail boat from Cameron
Parish reports that the water at Calcasieu Pass
was eight feet deep at the lighthouse, aud that
the entire country east aud west was sub
merged Tuesday night, drowning thousands of
cattle and running crops Lives were lost at
nearly all points.
The damage was widespread from the Missis-
sippi jetties 10 Point a la Hache The wind,
which was blowing hard all day Sunday, in
creased 10 a hurricane on Monday. The village
of Port Eads was inundated, and the sea was
running heavily over the jetties. Some of the
immense blocks Of concrete, weighing many
tons apiece, of which the sea wall is built. were
lifted out OF position and swallowed up by the
sea. Others were stood upon end and others
twisted out of place. The bulkhead that is
being built between this wall and the jetties
proper was entirely submerged and the waters
rolled over il from end TO end. The building
in which cement was stored for concrete blocks
was swept away, and the plank road that
served Port Eads as a Emblic street was fioated
of. The water continued TO rise on Monday
and reached the first floor Of several houses.
Many persons left their homes, taking refuge
in the hotel at Eadsport. The narrow neck of
land between the river bank and the Sea marsh,
bordering the bays and the gulf. was completely
under water. which in some places was waist
deep. There has been almost a total destruc-
tion of crops of all kinds from Point la Hache
10 Port Eads on the east side of the river.
The storm swept northeasterly. doing great
! NuVNR q LII.
water-wOrks tower was blown down. At Chi.
cago the storm tore through the trees of Doug
lass, Garfield and Humboldt Parks with the
| fury of a hurricane. Soft naples and saplings
were twisted of close 10 their trunks and
hurled over the tops Of the large trees. Two
real estate agency buildings on Madison street
near Garfield Park, were picked up by the wind
and pounded 10 pieces on the prairie. Street Cal
conductors and drivers, who were caught in the
teeth of the gale, say it was only with the great
est difficulty they held themselves from being
! thrown from their cars. All the streets in the
western and southwestern portion Of the city
We're Uttered with broken trees and shivered
4 sgnboards. Thewind attained velocity of from
45 TO 90 miles on the lake. Between Ypsilant
and Elkhart, Ind, the storm tore down all the
wires in that neighborhood and ON the Chicago
Burlington a. Quincy Railway the top Of a cal
was blown of and carried against the wire:
with such force as TO break them all
At Detroit, Mich, il was the fiercest gale il
80 years. No small boat could live an instant
on the Detroit River. Knots of men stood al
along the river front watching the seethinl
water Uptown il blew perfect hurricane al
afternoon. A great deal Of damage was done
Chimneys were snapped of like pipestems
trees were blown over, obstructing street-cal
travel, carriages were upset with their occu
pants and the streets were filled with sign
boards. People took the middle of the street h
escape falling signs.
On Lake Erie the storm was terrific and
great damage was done TO shipping as well a
in the various cities aud towns. At Erie Pa.
the electric-light works were SO badly wrecked
by the terrific gale that the city was left il
| darkness.
The effects at Buffalo were very severe. Sew
eral large express wagons were picked up an,
rolled across the street, horses and all. Team
became frightened and many wrecks were seel
along the principal streets. The back retain
ing wall of the new music hall now in process
of erection was blown down, and many person
met with narrow escapes A large chimney oil
the Tiff House crashed through the roof int
an unoccuped apartment.
Adyices from Port COlb0rne state that al
unknown three-masted schooner went dow
three miles east from there. The tug Ruth starte
out 10 pick up the sailors, but il was not though
she would succeed in such gale. The islam
"a strip of land along Bufalo's inner harbor-
was flooded, 80 6shermen's shanties were blow
down and several children were drowned.
at Fort Wayne, Ind, Odd Fellows Temple
Centiyer's Brewery, Hakes Bottling Works
Adams Express Office, and some of the princi
pal business buildings were unroofed. A fir
broke out in the outskirts of the city, and sey
eral buildings were destroyed.
The storm struck Toledo about noon Thurs
day, and from that time until 3 p. IN. the w
locity Of the wind was as miles per hour Their
was considerable damage done in a small wa,
blowing down cnimneys, breaking in show-wir
dows, unroofng buildings, blowing down tel,
graph and telephone lines, aud overturnin
shade trees. An unfinished two-stOry fran
building was RACED to the ground. Report
from Northwestern Ohio bring tdings of sim
lar damages, the most serious so far being 10 tl
Court house at Napoleon, which was injured [
, the extent Of $1,000. There was much excit,
ment at Toledo during the afternoon, as fol-
yachts were engaged in race ON Lake Fri
The yachts, however, all arrived safe at MOI
roe, Mich.