The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1888-07-26
APPALLING.
Great Destruction and Loss of
Life by a Storm and Cloud
burst.
Houses Swept Away, and Over
Twenty Persons Drowned
at Wheeling, w. Va.

noOu SHOW IL Is SIMPLY appalllnB Is anu eN-
erythlng is in such a chaotic condition
that details are difficult to obtain. The
wooden bridge at Nam street was swept
away with from twenty to thirty people
on it. Of these ten are known to be
saved. Several of the rescued are on tow
boats which could not land at the wharf,
owing to the current, and had to seek a
landing lower down. The river rose three
feet in fifty minutes. Dat on the National
road the coal chutes, houses and all are
gone. The Wheeling and Elm Grove
railway was swept away for miles and the
roads covered six feet with water. Over
the river the ruin is even worse. The
storm lasted less than an hour, flooding
the streets from house to house.
The Western Union Telegraph Office
had foot of water on the floor, j. w.
Hunters spice mills two feet, and other
buildings on Main and Market streets as
bad. On the upper end of Eoff street,
high on the hill in the Second ward, the
water was over the tops of the stores and
like objects, and, when it receded, left
sediment on the stores.
| Wagons in the valley of Wheeling creek
we're buried beneath mud and debris. The
Cham PLANE street and Eoff street bridges
are both gone, and Wood street bridge is
impossible. Nine persons living on Cald-
wells run are known to be drowned, and
six houses on Osldwell's run are gone.
The list will doubtless be increased.
The list of fatalities to date are as fol-
lows:
Herman G. Stanzell, owner of dairy.
Mrs. StanZell, mother of the former.
| Two small children.
| The Pittsburg, Wheeling and Kentucky
division of the Pittsburg, Cincinnati and
st. Louis road is badly washed at places
and at others covered foot deep. The
Ohio river trestle at the creek is gone.
Sewers burst in several places and roads
were washed 80 as to be impossible. The
substantial bridge on the suburban Elm
Grove motor line at Catherwood was
washed away. The loss IN the city will
reach 100000, and the damage to the
crops in the country is inestimable.
The ruin wrought by the cloud burst
out of town is awful and can only be as
certained definitely when means of COM
munication are restored. Every hour or
so new fatalities are reported. A man
named Keltz was washed away by Bogg's
run and he and his family were drowned.
Four lives were lost at Elm Grove, five
miles east.
Loss OF LIFE.
P1TTsBURa, July 20.-The Chronicle
Telegraph's Wheeling special says the loss
of life from the flood last night is at least
twenty-five. About fifteen bodies have
been found 80 far. The money loss is
about $150,000. The greatest loss of life
was on Wheeling creek and at Triadel-
phia. Search this morning resulted in
the discovery of number of bodies near
the latter place. Most of them we're
found among the drift which collected at
Elm Grove. The body of Mr.. Gaslon,
aged 60 years, prominent and wealthy
citizen was found near Elm Grove. His
wife's remains were found two miles below
Elm Grove hanging on a barbed wire
fence. Chas. Canbell, of the Wheeling
News, the latter aged 30 years, was found
among the drift wood. Mrs. Jane Fay
and her two grown daughters
Alice and Mary-were discovered a
short distance below Triadelphia and the
bodies of two brothers named German
we're found in the meadow where they had
been hurled by the furious waters.
Later and authentic details from Tria-
delphia show the destruction there was
more appalling than anywhere else. Fiji
teen families are homeless and saved
nothing but what they had on. Half this
village of 600 inhabitants were swept
away, but all but those before named
escaped to the hills.
THE STORM
n
Alexander, Pa, and the scene all along
the way is one of destruction and incon-
ceivable horror. Where the Triadel-
phia school house, large build
ing of six rooms, stood, the creek
is now a raging flood and
not vestige of even the foundation re-
mains. The whole south half of the town
has disappeared as clear as if it never
existed. The Wheeling relief committee,
which recently raised funds for the
Rowlesburg sufferers, expended the
balance for provisions and sent it Tria-
delphla. The Baltimore and Ohio, Pitts
burg division, is practically destroyed for
fifteen miles. The Western Union Tele-
graph company lost forty miles of wire
and most of the poles. Reports, are COM
ing in from all parts of Ohio county this
morning, indicating that the storm was
more disastrous to life and property in
the country than in this city. 1t cannot
be stated at this hour how many lives
have been lost. The loss in this city is
known to be ten, with number reported
missing.
Caldwell's Run which passes through
the Eighth ward of this city was the
SCENE OF GREATEST HAVOC.
Three houses were swept away and all
the inmates we're drowned. They were
Mrs. Barbara Stencil and son, Herman
Stencils; Alice and Annie Wingert, of Mil
tonsberg, o., nieces of Mrs. Stencil; John
Homsn and Mrs. Thomas Hawley and four
children. Her husband was in the yard,
and was swept one hundred yards down
stream, but managed to reach the
bank in safety. Only two bodies
have been recovered-Alice Win
CERT and Mrs. Stencil. Great damage is