Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1889-01-17
THEDEATH ANGEL
Awful Destruction Oh Wood Street
AGREAT BUILDING COLLAPSED
FIFTY HUMAN BEINGS IN THE RUINS.

Pittsburgh Post Thursday.
Death came riding on a chariot of winC
yesterday, and when he turned his sombe
steeds away again the blood of half hun
dred citizens was on his wheels.
Marshaling its forces in Texas on Mon
day, chilling the Mississippi Valley as i
blew North, and mingling with the COLI
winds of the lakes yesterday morning. tht
storm swerved toward the Southeast anC
hied for Pittsburgh's iron heart. SOFTLY
it came at first, just tingling the spring
like weather of the past week with win
ter'S bitter extract. Then a cold dTiZZlt
announced the coming of colder wind
1t was full of gusts and unpleasant sur
priseS. Shingles had been flying in the all
for an hour or more. when. at exactly 12.4;
P. NJ, the storm broke Its ferocity was
soon expended, but not until it had glut
ted on calamity and chaos. Then il went
East, and Washington was getting leady
to meet it last night. Its velocity Was &
miles an hOar, according to the signal ser
vice calculations speed seldom attain
ed by winds in this cline. At noon yes
terday the barometer stood at 29.0S, the
lowest known since the signal service was
] ~ L. VI. l.
| had risen to 1892, and at s was $3.50 and
! still rising
| All night the fragments of the storm
sobbed around the caves, as though doing
penance for the crimes committed.
Although there is possibly not a block
in either city where no damage was done
| by the storm. the real disaster was the de
| StructiOn of the large seven-stOry building
| being erected by c. W. Wiley on Diamond
| street, near Wood Under its luinS were
| buried 80 men, for the most part work.
men. OF these II are dead OF diving. The
/ falling walls carried with them all or a
| portion of eight surrounding buildings
| The hospitals were filled with the diving
and the mOrgue with the dead. The Cor
oner and police authorities were COMPEL
ed to acknowledge last night they could
form no idea of the extent of the calamity
The above figures account for those only
who have been found. There are a num-
Der miSteriouSly missing, how many moth
ing but the ruins can tell. twill be DAYS
until they can be entirely removed.
1t is impossible to approximate damage
to property. The effect of the storm was
so widespread that no successful attempts
at classification and estimation have been
made.
Pittsburgh has been under spell ever
since the storm ploughed through it
Hundreds rushed from high buildings,
pale and trembling in their fright. The
ta1lest buildings tOttered and swayed like
trees. Such experiences, supplemented by
the news of the calamities that leallv did
happen, put the public nerve on the edge,
and it has been there ever since. The fit
full gale tnat kept blowing at intervals
through the afternoon and night awaken
ed the fear that new blizzard might be
born at any minute. So men walked the
streets and cOnverSed gloomily when they
usually are in bed. A terrible calamity
had happened-the worst in some RESPECTS
in the history of Pittsburgh. and a com
mon sympathy kept people alert and anxi-
Gus. Tremulous women, wives or moth
erS, who had heard of the accident rushed
to the mOlgne or police headquarters to
ease their minds with either the assurance
that no one dear to them was among the
victims or positive knowledge of the worst
The nervous state of the public mind
was evidenced during the night when a
fire alarm was sounded from a neighbOr-
hood adjacent to the Wiley building
The streets were thronged in an instant.
and the police had extreme difficulty CON
trolling the crowds, in which the element
of desperation was apparent.
THE COLLAPSE OF A HIGH BUILDING.
People on the downtown streets were
being blown about every way, and many
had abandoned the idea of getting home
for dinner and were looking for 1estaur-
ants and hotels when a cutting dash of
hail succeeded the drizzle. With it came
a gust of wind that seemed to have drop
ped straight downward and then scurrv
along the pavementS at a healthy rate
The storm seemed to be the most severe
in the vicinity of the Diamond. and a lit
tie girl, whose short skirts gave the gusts
good vantage, found herself carried across
Wood street and into the shelter of the
Germania Bank entrance before she re-
allied where she was. Men held one an
other up moment and then broke for
cover. Horses were almost blown off
their feet and vehicles overturned as they
passed interSecting alleys through which
the wind whizzed. There was a deep
rumble, and the ground trembled under
hurrying feet. Men paused and listened,
but there was no repetition of the sound.
and it was generally supposed to be thun-
der. But moment later the fire bell up
in the City Hall tower was filling the fleet
winds with new sound The air was in
were difficult to count. the sound being
carried about by the wind. No two were
distributed successfully, and many people
were in doubt where the alarm originated.
SCENES OF WILD TERROR.
Not so, however, those in the vicinity
of Wood and Diamond streets. By them
the warning of the bell was almost un-
needed. They had already seen and heard
enough to make their blood run cold
Where the tall Wiley building had stood
moment before, its unfinished walls and
open front marking ragged outline
against the sky, cloud of yellow. sitting
dust was settling over the wind storms
plague spot. People were gathering from
every direction. A circle of blanched
faces fringed the great pile of bricks. and
eyes full of tears tried to pierce the cloud
of dust. The gusts of wind cavOrted and
howled through it like shadowy devils
dancing over victims graves, and by this
very agitation the miStS were soon blown
away and the fearful ruin of the storm
laid bare.
The Wiley building, with its seven
floors and tons of masonry, was oblitera-
ted save few ragged remnants of walls.
Over toward the Eichbaum building stood
a tall chimney, which, built in the corner
and braced by walls at right angles. had
weathered the wind and stood swaying on
its crumbling foundation. To it chung
ragged pieces of wall heavy enough to
crush buildings half as high like eggs
So the big brick column stood, trembling
between joining the rest of the ruin or
falling backward and creating more.
RUINS ALL AROUND.
When the right wall of the Wiley build |
ing was forced out it came tumbling down |
upon the three-story brick e-finding es-
tablishment of w. II. Toner, No. 80 Dia- |
mond street. Although this was a sub
stantial little building and comparatively |
new. it was literally wiped out of exist |
ence. The avalanche of brick from above
reduced it, like the Wiley structure, to |
pile of debris. The tin roof lay in the eel |
lar. The highest section of wall left was
less than II feet. The millinery store of |
Mrs. McClung, No. 33 Diamond, marked |
the limit of destruction on the East. as
hy.in IL Co 4