The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1886-05-22
STORM ECHOES.
Death, Wreck and Devastation BY
the Recent Storms.
Towns and Cities In Illinois, Ohio and In.
diana Receive Fearful Visltations-
Shocking Loss of Life at Xenia,
o., and Elsewhere.

noon and wrought great destruction. One
brick block was wrecked and three ware
houses were unroofed. The Eastern
Hotel, Masonic hall and four store build
ings, also the upper story of the Angel
block, in which was the Odell Bank and
Odd Fellows hall, were completely de-
stroyed. Scarcely room in the town
escaped injury. The loss will foot up
about $4,000. The houses we're twisted
off of their foundations and destroyed;
trees a foot in diameter were snapped off.
The large livery barn of Hoke Bros. was
completely destroyed. A large three
story elevator, operated by c. H. Chisam,
was blown off its foundation and badly
damaged The two-story brick hardware
store of S. S. Cole is total wreck. A
number ofresdences were badly wrecked,
and as many as seven barns blown to
pieces. The streets are filed with tim
beers, boards, trees and fences. The new
school-house is partially unroofed, and
one-story school building was completely
demolished.
Those fatally injured are:
Lottie Zwihe, ten years old. she was
carried over two hundred feet in the air,
and fell on the railroad track, smashing
her skull.
George and Charles Hoke, liverymen,
both fatally injured.
S. S. Cole, merchant.
Two children of John Miller are seri-
ously injured. The Miller children had
taken refuge in brick building and were
buried in the debris.
The storm only lasted about five min
utes. Ten minutes before the storm the
air seemed to get green. The cyclone
struck Odell at 3 40 p. m, and was APP
parently formed by the union of two
black and ominous storm clouds which
were first noticed about five miles from
Odell, one south and one west. The
wind was from the east. At this time the
passenger trains of the Chicago & Alton
met and passed at Odell, which is about
forty miles from here. The engineers Of
both trains saw the storm approaching
and stopped their trains one on each side
of the town, and the storm swept be-
tween them. The windows of both trains
were smashed and the passengers greatly
terrorized.
A passenger described the storm-cloud
as an inverted mountain peak of inky
backness, streaked with lightning flashes
and accompanied by great heat and loud
and dreadful roaring. In few minutes
the storm-cloud had disappeared and APP
parently dissipated. Every telegraph
line was wrecked and communication has
not been fully established yet.
XEN1A, o., May ia terrible storm
RACED here from nine until twelve O'Clock
last night. 1t is supposed to have been 9
watcr.spout. 1t struck the southeastern
part of town, and followed the course Of
the Shawnee river, which was swollen In
q few moments so as to inundate all the
! neighboring streets, sweeping away OF
totally running more than one hundred
houses. Many were swept down the cur
rent with tn families in them. One Of
these, that of Aaron Ferguson, contained
nine persons of his own family and threC
! of John Burck's, who had fed there fol
safety.
man named Earbor risked his life
| by throwing himself into the current and
floating against the house, and with 9
rope in his hands succeeded in saving
the inmates of the house by means of 8
boat.
Twenty dead bodies have been taker
out of the stream, and are now lying il
the Mayors Office, and many more arc
supposed to be lost.
The Panhandle railroad, including its
embellishments, is total wreck in this ell
tire vicinity.
The greatest excitement prevails
hn J., {, ,l, ~, I
persisted is surrounded by crowds anXi
GUS to view the remains Of the dead
Many narrowing stories are narrated.
A family named Morris was fioateC
away in their house and drowned, will
the exception of a child about sever
years Old, who was found this momin!
Clinging to a tree.
1880 p. Mp to this hour twenty
three dead bodies have been recovered
from the ruins of once happy homes
which are now naught but tangled mas
of timbers and slime. Relief parties ar
hard at work; the doctors are all over
worked, and nearly every uninjured hous
is hospital.
The condition of the town is sickening
The groans of the wounded fill the all
and whole families have been killed. Owe
mile of the Little Miami Railroad j
completely gone, and no trains can b
run. The nearest approach is Dresde
Junction.
LEBANON, o., May ia cyclon
struck this town at ten O'Clock last night
1t came from the northwest and was &C
compauicd by ram and hail. The Leba
non House was unroofed, also the Meth
odist Episcopal church and the Unto
Sunday-schOol.
Washington Hall was unroofed, dc
stroying all the scenery Of the G. A. Il
No serious casualties are reported. Ever
shade tree in town is damaged and no
less than forty private residences shoV
the effects of the great blow.
There are twenty persons known to b
killed and the number Of injured is sal
to be seventy-flve.
During the rain the wind blew fearfu
ly, blowing down telegraph poles an
wires, trees and every thing that came i
its way. Communication of any kind
not to be had with the town, six hundre
feet of the Little Miami track just east {
Xanfo hnipor 90