Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1888-09-05
A CLouD-BURST.

Z Of 100000. = :,
LITTLE Rock, Ark, Sept. 1.-The Gazettets
Hot Springs lark. special says: To-day
Is an epoch in the history Of Hot Springs.
The city is Quilted. Ruin and wreck meet
the vision everywhere, and nothing like it
has ever boon known to compare with the
result Of Thursday nights storm, which
occurred too late to be telegraphed It
was q waterspout and the valley was
swept with mighty tidal wave. The loss
to property is fearful, while the sac
rlf1ce to human life is, under the circum-
stances, appalling. Swift and terrible
was the visitation. Without warning
people were awakened from slumber to
find themselves threatened with destruc.
ton by mad waves. Strange to relate few
people We're conscious of horrible disaster
Till they awolke to look upon the desolate
scenes this morning and drag the drowned
from drifts.
The storm struck the town at IL o'clock
Thursday night from northwesterly
direction. It was accompanied by stiff
cool winds, though not strong enough to
produce damage. Rain fell in tor
rents from II to l o'clock with
out intermission or cessation. Indeed.
those who were up and witnessed the
awful scene describe it as one never
before seen by them. The vivid flashes of
lightning displayed. as it were, great
sheets of falling water. At the close of
the storm great and ominous sound,
mingled with the shouts Of people and cries
OF distress, went up from the valley, and
such people as were in the vicinity of the
creek and ravines went forth to render as
sistance
The flood on Central avenue, the princi-
pal thoroughfare, assumed an angry river,
whose rushing tide swept every thing NOV
able on its bosom. For over half an hour
the avenue was transformed into
torrent fifty yards wide. Barrels, boxes
and parts of houses came down on the
tide, and were left strewn on the side
walks. Several large hotels were flooded
to the depth of four feet with murky
water, and many buildings were totally
destroyed. Up to this hour six persons
are known to be missing, five of whom
have been found dead in wrecked build
ings The damage to property is estimated
at 800. O0O
1t is impossible to accurately estimate
the damage to property, both public and
private, but it goes away up in the thou
sands. The greatest damage was from
Malvern crossing up to the northern sub
urbs.
The destruction was augmented by the
formation of drifts at the upper ends of the
creek arch. The mouth of the arch on
both Wilmington and Park avenues choked
comp etely, which threw the main body of
the flood over the streets and down Central
avenue, and also caused back water to flow
up the two creeks above the two arches
On Wilmington avenue there was but little
damage done until the food reached the
Josephine Hotel. The office floor of this
house is considerably lower than the
street, hence the food rushed in through
the front doors, and when at the highest
stood at least four feet deep on the lower
floor, completely covering the counter in
the Office and the billiard tables in the
b lizard ROOM
The da mage along the line from Upper
Park avenue to the junction with Whit
tington avenue proved grave on investiga
ton. The first building moved from its
foundation in the north part of the tow
was one of the small dwellings owned b.
Hon. Nicholas Bell, and occupied by col
ored family named Fletcher. 1t was swept
away, and the mother of family, Matte
Fletcher, and her four children were
drowned. The husband had q miraculous
escape.
help were heard in the creek back of DR..
Franklin's residence. The dark was i'm
penetrable, and the rain came down in
sheets. Through the roaring and crashing
the voice of the man could be heard grow
ing fainter. Jack Franklin hastily drew on
some clothing and wading into the torrent
in the direction of the cries succeeded in
drawing the man out, disabled by the fall
OF his house, and landed him in his fathers
residence. He gave the man wine and kept
him until morning, when the poor fellow
was able to get out and find the bodies of
his wife and children caught in the debris
of the creek below
An old man and his wife named Harri-
son, who recently moved to the city, occu-
pied a small cottage near the Arlington
stable. The force of the water caused the
building to collapse just as the old man and
his wife were making their escape The
wife was caught underneath the debris and
persisted Her body was found in the
ruins. In the rear of the Waverly Hotel
were a couple of small buildings which
were carried away, in one of VIII Oh Mr.
O'Brien's cook, q colored woman, was
sleeping. She is supposed to have been
drowned, as she has not yet been heard
from. The Big Iron and old Hale bath
all the buildings all the way down
Central avenue. In the rear of Douglas
book store the embankment caved in,
smashing the rear door and flooding the
book and stationery store with mud and
water to depth Of fourteen inches, doing
much damage.
The Army and Navy Hospital and
grounds were considerably damaged. The
loss is estimated at 81, $50
Mayor Kimbell and the entire police
force were out promptly, and did every
thing possible to render aid where needed.
The mayor called to his assistance large
force of men, and the work of removing
drift and searching for bodies has been
pushed forward
DROWNED WHILE ASLEEP.
PUEBLO, COL, Sept. 1.-Seven cowboys
pitched camp last Tuesday night in the
dry bed of a creek just west of Pixies
Peak. During the night rain came up
and cloud burst near them. A food of
water six feet deep came sweeping down
upon them, carrying every thing in its path,
including seven sleeping cowboys. BY
terrible struggle two of them succeeded
in getting hold Of the branches Of trees
and there they chung half dead until the
food subsidized, which was almost as quick
as it had come upon them. The bodies of