The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-04-04
LOUIsvILLE's SORROW.
The Awful Tornado's Work in the
Falls City.
Outburst oeF1ames Drives or the Rescuerl
-Frenxied scenes-Two Hundred
Hoeses In Ruins-The Fated
SNS Dance Hall.

death and destruction everywhere. Out
side of the clearly defined limits Of the
destruction the people knew only of a
heavy rain accompanied by high wind.
Soon came the alarm of fire from a
dozen different stations and the horrors
of the calamity began to dawn on the
people.
Great stone warehouses, halls of
amusement railroad stations and DWELL
ing houses all went down before the
mighty powers of the air. The storm
soon passed on, the clouds scattered and
the moon cast its light over sorely
stricken city. Relief parties were soon
organized and the whole force Of the
fire department was put to work.
The wrecked part of the city lies be-
tween Eighteenth, Broadway, Seventh
and Main streets, the storm passing d.
agonally across that section, which is
probably mile square.
At least 200 houses are in ruins
The buildings on Main street. from
Eighth to Fourteenth, are in ruins, not
one of the handsome wholesale houses
being left and all the tobacco ware
houses being swept away.
On Market street, Falls City Hall,
four-story building, was blown down
while several Masonic and Knights of
Honor lodges were in session.
One hundred men and women were
buried IN the ruins
Every other house on Market, Jeffer-
son and Walnut streets, from Eleventh
to Sixteenth, is in ruins. Falkland, a
suburb, was swept away.
At the Union Depot, at the foot of
Seventh street. the Chesapeake & Ohio
train for Washington was just starting
filled with passengers. The building
was Frustrated, crashing in on the train.
All the passengers, however, were
rescued except one newsboy.
Every building, tree and telegraph
pole in the district struck was leveled.
Probably the greatest loss of life oc-
CURED at the Falls City Hall, which was
the center of the tornado In the lower
rooms of the hall were so or 75 children,
with their mothers and other relatives,
taking dancing lessons. There were at
least 125 persons on the lower floor, and
IS more attending lodge meeting on
upper floors when the terrible wind
swept down upon the building. The
entire structure, in less than five
minutes, was shapeless mass of brick
and mortar, burying 200 helpless victims,
of which number few escaped uninjured.
Conservative estimates place the loss
of life at this point at 100, while other
reports indicate the number to be nearer
200.
At three o'clock a. m. 35 dead
bodies had been taken from this ruin
and Is wounded and dying Only those
OIL the third floor had been reached, the
room containing the dancing school
pupils and visitors not yet being opened.
Immediately upon the burst of the
cyclone the fire bells sounded and the
police went to work. In ten minutes a
posse appeared at the Falls City Hall.
The walls of the adjoining house were
first propped up, and then began the
work of cutting through the heavy slate
roof that covered all At first the work
was difficult and laborious on account
of the anxious multitude that thronged
the wreck to view the ruin. Women
were found digging at the slate with
their fingers, crazed at the groans be-
meath. each of which they thought
assembled from their dying ones.
The work of eXcavating was then
moved from the rear of the building to
the front, where it was supposed the
greater crowd was gathered. As soon
as the roofing was removed and the
mass of brick beneath, the first sight
that met the eyes was any thing but
hopeful. Ten women locked in each
others arms were drawn out of the de-
bris, all dead but one. James Hassen,
whose wife had been at the lodge meet
ing, was foremost in the work and the
first person whom he drew out of the
building was his wife, who died in his
arms. He laid her by the side of the
others who were dead and continued to
work for the living.
Within the next hour thirty men and
women were drawn out dead, but with
no wounds on their bodies, and it is
thought that all met their death from
suffocation.
At twelve o'clock the opening up of
portion of the debris of the Falls City
Hall caused draught to penetrate the
ruins. whereupon the smoldering fire
broke out with tremendous ferceness.
1t spread rapidly and forced the workers
TO desert the pile. AS soon as the fire.
men had been driven away groans from
the imprisoned people became
shrieks, and so great was the
horror of the moment that the
watchers grew frantic and screamed
and ran about like wild, the terrible
sufferings which they were unable to
alleviate driving them to despair. Sew
erai lines of men had been throwing
water on the flames, but it was more
than an hour before work could be pro-
oeeded with, and then it was carried on
with much difficulty on account of the
heat
The cyclone was predicted by signal
service bulletin in the afternoon, but no
heed was paid to its warning.
TORNADO INCIDENTS.
At midnight a press correspondent
called as the city hospital at the corner
of Chestnut and Floyd streets There
were found six of the injured victims of
the dreadful catastrophe. They lay
stretched upon their white couches in
the dim light, while an occasional groan
of pent up agony burst from the lips of
the sufferers
j. c. Sterne, taken from his home on
Market street. between Ninth and
Tenth. suffering from wounds about the
head and two broken ribs. Little ap-
prehension is entertained as to the re-
suit OF his injuries and at present he is
In fair way to recover.
At $50 the rescuing party heard cries
at the rear of the fallen building.