Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-04-07
DRIVEN FROM THEIR HOME
AN IOWA TOWN INUNDATED BY AN
 ICE GORGE,
And Families Are Forced to Flee in Their Night Dresses on Cakes of Ice. Houses Crushed to Pieces Like Egg Shells-The Fatalities.

Their Night Dresses on Cakes of Ice.
 Houses Crushed to Pieces Like Egg
 Shells-The Fatalities.
 MASON CITY, Ia., April 7.-The greatest fresLet ever known in this country was ex- perenced Thursday night, the town of Rock Falls, on the banks of the Shell Rock river, experiencing it most disastrously. The iron bridge, 155 feet long, and the dam are both gone, and the damage to property there will not fall short of 900. The Shell Rock had formed an immense gorge, miles in ex- tent, and in some places piled up twenty feet high The heavy rain of Thursday loosened the ice gorge, which came down the river with such force that everything in its course was swept before the flood. The village of Rock Falls was completely inundated, houses and barns were crushed and swept away, and in some cases no vestige remains of what was once substantial structure
 The house of Mir. Cruikshank was crushed like an egg shell. The husband, hearing the roar of the torrent, got out of bed, but before he could light lamp the water in the room was up to his waist He pushed two of his children through trap door, following them himself His wife rushed with her babe to the upper story of the house just as it was yielding to the force of the flood, and escaped from the roof by jumping on the floating ice, where they remained until daylight, when neighbors rescued them.
 A house in which Mrs. Anderson lived with her five children was swept from it's founda- tion and foated against some trees, where it lodged, the inmates escaping on the floating ice, where they remained, barefooted and in their night clothes, until daylight
 When the water receded it left immense piles of ice in the streets. Cakes three feet thick are piled up ten to fifteen feet high, and it will be weeks before they melt. It now looks like an immense Arctic scene, with the roofs of the houses protruding through the ice. All day the ice has been running, and the r1ver is clogged with timbers and drift wood. The damage done further up the stream must have been great.
 Thomas Eperrett, one of the founders of the town, was taken suddenly ill during the night, and telegraphed for physician, who arrived at the swollen river, but could not cross From both sides of the river they at tempted to get line across to haul over the medicine, but were unsuccessful An at tempt was made to fly kites over, but the wind blew gale, and this scheme was aban- doned. Wooden ramrods with strings tied to them were fired from guns, and the most muscular of mon attempted to throw stones, with lines attached, across, but all to no avail.
 WAvERLY, Ia., April 7.-This city has been visited by one of the most fearful inundations that it has ever witnessed. The Cedar river at this place has been rising at the rate of a foot an hour, and has overleaped itself, and half the town is submerged. The mills are stopped, and the tracks of the Waverly Short Line road are two feet under water The flood still continues, and the water is within 100 feet of Bremen.
 T. the Missouri immediately above Sioux City since the memorable inundation of the spring of 1884, The Sioux river, swollen by the flood waters of the Missouri, rapidly ac- cumulated a great mass of drift wood and ice against the railroad bridge The pressure was sufficient to move the bridge three feet, and would have swept the structure entirely away but for precautions taken by the railroad company. During a vio- lent electric storm @ tornado passed over the city from southwest to northeast. It struck in but one place, on the northwest part of the city, and then rebounded in the air. At the place where the cloud struck it picked up the residence of Mark Modlin and hurled it to the ground in the rear of the lot. Mrs. Mod lin was very severely injured. The house of MT. Richmond was wrecked, and barn near by was split into kindling wood.
 DELPHI, Ind, April "A terrific wind and rain storm passed over this place last evening. At Sleethe, five miles north, it partook of the nature of cyclone. Several houses were blown down, and freight train on the Monon line was lifted from the track. No one wac injured.
 CENTERv1LLE, Mich, April "A remark ably severe thunder storm passed over this place Thusday afternoon, doing much damage to property and causing the loss of three lives. James Parsons's barn, in Sher- man township, was struck by lightning and totally destroyed, MT. Parsons land his little child and a Mrs. Yakee being instantly killed at the same time.
 PORT HURON, Mich, April 7.-Thursday night MT. Matheson and his 16-year-old son, of Oil Springs, Ont, started to cross the river here to Sarnia in rowboat. When about half way across sudden squall drove the boat against cake of ice and the craft capsized. Their cries for help could be heard as they foated down the river, but beforesany one could go to their assistance they were drowned.
 Charged with Incendiarism.
 NEW YORK, April 7.-The coolness of Charles w. Halpin and his wife, who have charge of the tenement house at No. 2lO Delancey street, in having two incfpient blazes extinguished early yesterday morning