The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-04-16
sAuKsRAp1ps AND. ST. CLOUD.
First Reports Considerably Understate tn
Loss Of Life and Property.

First Reports Considerably Understate the
Loss or Life and Property.
ST. PAUL, April 15.-The reports Of the cy-
clone at st. Cloud, Sank Rapids Rice Station
and other stations in the vicinity, last night and
early this morning, were not exaggerated At
3 o'clock this morning. in the places named,
there were forty nine dead and nearly two hun
dred injured, with many still missing whose
bodies will probably be recovered to-day. just
enough houses are left in Sank Rapids to form a
fringe around the village limits. The debris is
not piled in heaps, but scattered far and wide
The sign "Sauk Rapids" in the Manitoba depot
and basketful of books were found in Rice
Station, miles distant. This shows the terrible
power of the storm. No reports have yet been
received from outlying districts, where, it is be-
leved. great destruction of property and loss Of
life has been wrought. The storm extended
from jamestown, D. T., through Minnesota and
into Wisconsin, though its most disastrous eff
fects are to be found in the three places first
named. The City Council this morning voted
So, 900 in cash to aid the cyclone sufferers, and
Governors Hubbard dispatched carload of pro-
visions to Sank Rapids The car was accom-
panied by committee Of the Jobbers' Union,
DR.. Denslow. who, with others, went last
evening BY special train to st. Cloud, returned
this morning. Upon reaching ST. Cloud, he
said, the physicians from St Paul and Minneap-
oils divided, part going to Sank Rapids. Dr.
Denslow was on the force sent to tho St Bene-
dictine Sisters Hospital, and they were busy un-
til o'clock this morning Fully twenty five in
jured were taken to the hospital alone, and he
did not know how many more were cared for
in private houses Two of those taken to the
hospital will very probably die; one is woman
who has a broken collar bone, both bones of the
left forearm and both bones of the left leg tract
ured, all comminuted. and the pelvis broken,
an accident seldom chronicled in surgery. Her
head and face are bruised beyond recognition,
yet strange to say, the woman is conscious. and
talked freely, saying her hip hurt some. but
otherwise she felt no pain. The other probably
fatal case is that of young lady twenty years
old, both legs being so badly crushed that they
had to be amputated midway between the knee
and thigh. One man. who was lying in the hos
pital badly injured, said three of his children
were dead. Another man in the next cot to him
responded, saying his wife and three children
were killed by the storm. Three little boys,
about six years old. were brou ght in at mid
night, wounded cruelty. A woman was found
with piece of her scalp as large as a mans
hand torn from her head and hanging by shreds.
Drs. Penslow and Richie, shortly after mid
night, went across to Sank Rapids to render
what assistance they could there. Twenty three
dead bodies had then been found and the doc
tors from Minneapolis were busy caring for the
injured.
The work Of devastation in the district visited
by the cyclone is complete, as the Uttered and
shiyered remains of what were frame buildings
will testify. The scene to-day was one to appall
strong hearts. For a width of about six hundred
feet, running from southwest to northeast, the
tornado had leveled nearly everything before it.
An occasional building, partially wrecked, was
left to tell the tale of destruction, as if by
trast with the ruin to be seen on every side.
Scarcely vestige of any structure remained so
as to be recognized, the ground being literally
covered with all kinds Of timbers, promiscuously
tangled together. 1t is estimated that four hun
dred structures were blown down. all Of frame.
and not costly. The Manitoba depot was un-
rooted and wrecked, thus almost entirely cutting
off telegraphic communication. The only building
of any consequence, aside from the depot, injured
was the brewery, and this was badly wrecked
and twisted. The small residences were mostly
occupied by foreigners whose names 1t has been
impossible to secure with any degree of accura-
cy. The Catholic hospital is filed with wound
ed, but only Ave or six of them considered to
be in a dangerous condition. The others are
slightly hurt. There fiftyfour wounded in the
hospital last night, beside number thats were
taken to private residences To-day there are
about forty in the hospital, two having died and
the others being removed. The dead bodies at
the engine-house have been neatly dressed and
cofaned. The funeral will probably occur to-
morrow. 1t is impossible to say anything def
mite about the rebuilding, but it is not believed
that there will be much delay in replacing the
structures and tenement-houses, for laboring
people arc in demand. The pecuniary loss will
hardly go above $50, 000
The force of the storm was such as to wrench
off the door of the safe in the postoce and carry
it some distance from the building A church
bell, weighing $50 pounds, was found among the
debris 400 feet away from any building. The
remains Of the dead are almost unacceptable,
being terribly crushed and blackened. There
are remarkable number of persons injured
about the hips and SPINE Many of the surviv-
ors will be disabled for life. The delegation of
doctors from ST. Paul and Minneapolis worked
all night under the disadvantage of having no
splnts or drugs. as the drug stores were demol-
ished. Splints were made from shingles, with
which the ground was strewn in the track of
the storm for miles One fortunate thing was
the.fact that the schools had been dismissed on
Friday. or the fatalities among the children
would have been appalling, the school house hav-
ing been razed to the foundation.
Fnilou;cU era e1d;t;or Al = r,co ~ thnen I;1lod.