Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-07-29
CHI6AGO'SBIG STORM
Fourteen Persons Killed and
 Twenty-Five Injured.
MANY HOUSES DEMOLISHED
Wind, Rain, and Hail Do Their Best To
 Wreck the Town.

Over Four Inches of Rain Fell in Thrse
 Hours-BuildInRs Blown Down Crush
 tug Thoir Inmates-Hundreds of Base
 ments Fluoded-Strsst Cars Piunging
 Through Three Foot o1 watsr-PrairIes
 CHICAGO, July e9.-The storm which swept across tho pratries and struck Chi cago Saturday night was without paral- lel in the history af this section of the coun- try. The records of the local Signal Service station show nothing approaching this deluge. From 6,SO to 9,sO four and twelve one hundreth inches of raln fell
 Without soing into figures 1t may be stated that the volume of water which fell inside of the city limits would make lake on which could be lioatad the greatest navy In the world.
 It is impossible to estimate the damage with any degree of accuracy. Hardly house in the city escaped the fury of the storm. Buildings were blown down. base ments flooded, plate glass windows shat tered and valuable shade trees upruotod or bBoken by the fury of tho gale. lt is safe to say that tho loss will reach into the hun dreds of thousands.
 On every hand wreplxage was visible to- day. On the west eide buildings were dc molishcd, trees uprooted and entire side walks disappeared. Garfield Park was al- | moat bereft of foliage. There tho wind de- vastated path 400 feet in width, Four new bricK buildings at Rockwell and Sixteenth streets wore demolished, and two men who had sought refuge m the doorwaJs were crushed to death in the wreck. Two lasge brick buildings on Twsn ty-frss street collapsed, fell on ad- joining cottages and killed seven people. besides injuring six others.
 Two families were almost obiiterated in this disaster Japes Lusk's cottage on Fifteenth street whs blown to pieces, but l the family miracuiously escaped death. It rained for three hours, and the climax | came at ;45, when all clements united and | tho very foundations of tho city wele shaken.
 Water poured into every basement and drove thousands of poor people into the street. In the police stations prisoners | were compelled to cling to the bars to l escape drowning.
 The fires In the Ra|mep and tho Grand Pacific were extingutshed. Three feet of water flooded tho Clifton House basement At eoe OAlcago Opera House much or the l Blue Beard" scenery was ruined.
 Panics were narrowly averted in the 1 theatres Whero the electric lights ceased to burn. Whole blocks beyond Western ave- nuc wers under water and tho wooden side. walks Aoated like rafts. Both the cable railways were completely paralyzed and the Lasalke street tunnel was surgins | stream.
 1 HinHan street officers saved Mrs. Chepeks and six children In basement by plunsins Into four feet of water. Officer Thomas DorGah was dangerously injured by elec- tracal discharge. and Maggie Austin was l rescued from a current on Lake street. Scores Of instances were reported to-day 1 of casualties mainly by lightning, and a pumbsr of tho victims cannot recover J6hn Hayes' house ou Oakley avenue was demolished and one son fatally hurt three persons boing very serioasly injured Ernest Blocter was killed on Sixty-sixth l street.
 Fires were innumerable, and S5Q,OOO damagss resulted from that cause Off at Hammond tho great packing houses suo- cupbed to flames, caused by lightning
 The police pepert fourteen persons dead and twenty-five injured, thrce of them fatally. In the 7sfb,ns office the storeo- l typers worked in water to their waists. So much sewage was returned from the river by tAs back current that the Health
 Commissioner has advised the boiling of
 water before drinking. The pecuniary
 loss is estimated at q. .0O0.00o