The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-02-28
HASSAYAMPA FLOOD.
Graphic Story Told By . Res
cued Miner.


fHEscsu. 4. T.. Feb. s7.-Ths second
courier arrived late this afternoon from the
site Of the big dam which caused such .
disaster. The roads being in such bad
condition ssiil. IL is almost impossible TO
travel. he interviewed Captain Hunt. re-
Gently Of the United States army. who
was on watch with Superintendent Brown
when the dam eAye way. He stated that
the water had been rising ~ the
rate Of one and . half feet an hour
ali day Friday. and Ill the men that could
be secured. about twenty in all, had been
employed in blasting the waste water way
to increase its capacity. AL the other gates
for allowing the escape Of the water we're
wideopen. Even after the water reached the
waste water war. the bottom OF which is
several feet lower than the top OF the dam.
there was no percepdbls decrease IN the
rise OF water.
At 8 O'Clock IL commenced to 20 over the
top, and BY midnight . sheet Of water
three feet deep was pouring over II. Cap
tain Hunt said the frst sign of break Was
the snapping Of . large steel cable connect
ing the tower in the middle OF the dam
with the bank This occasioned loud re-
port. and he said il seemed as II . ball Of
tendent Brown and himself, who we're
standing on the bank within twenty feet
OF the water. thought il was some giant
powder exploded.
The next instant the tower tottered and
it seemed as il the entire dam. containing
10000 tons Of rock, all moved bodily at
once. The roar OF waters and grinding of
the boulders became perfectly deafening.
T. N. Packer, . placer miner, lived about
. mile below the dam. He has long hair
reaching away down on his shoulders. to
which be says be owes his life. When the
roof of his cabin, TO which he was ciinging.
noated into the side Of . hill. his hair
caught on same bushes and, unlike Absa-
lom, his long hair proved the means Of
saving him instead OF causing his death.
The messenger who vas sent to warn
those at the lower dam. and who failed to
do so on account Of getting drunk, has not
been seen since.
The first of the survivors to arrive In
Prescott were John Hardee. Ed Davis and
w. 81. Russell, all OF them being more or
less bruised and skinned from climbing .
steep hiil among cactus and sharp rocks 70
escape from the dood.
John Hardee gave his experience rs fol-
lows: Il vas camped on Barren creek in
. tent ~ith three others: went TO bed at 10.
some time after midnight was awakened
by deafening roar. when jumped out OF
bed and yelled to the others: Dam has
broken; get up and run for your lives
We all dressed only in our under.
clothes. Under my pillow were my pants
with about 500 in the pockets, and my
vest contained two 6ne gold watches. but
had no lime TO stop for eithaR. We ~ san
Is fast Is We could for high ground. As
reached little raise fell down when the
water struck me. but managed to run on
my hads and knees for quite distance.
II got up again and looking sroand !
saw wave at least sixty feet high strike
the tent aud 1t was gone. The distance be-
tween bluffs At this point Is about go yards
and the water 6iied this space sixty feet
deep. The hrst person l saw was Tom
Boone who had his little sister In his arms
having carried her from the tent
Mrs Boone came up soon afterwards
and said her husband bad been lost He
had been the first one to hear the coming
of the avalanche Of water and had awak-
ened others while be was still in the tent
His boy rushed out Of the tent and seeing
bis little sister. grabbed her in his arms
and ran. His mother followed. When
Mr.. Boone came out. not knowing that the
little girl was safe, he went around the
tent to look for her, instead OF running d.
rect to the hill. and in doing 50 was over
taken and drowned. Mrs. Boone was
knocked down. and narrowly escaped be-
ing drawn into the food. Her daughter.
aged IA. who started with her was lost.
"A huge boulder. weighing hundreds OF
tons, in front of our tent was swept away,
and next day vent down the cut five
miles In search OF bodies and saw no trace
OF il.
al the upper dam the company had .
twenty horsepower upright boiler and
engine that had been used in running the
sawmill. and not even bolt Of il Was TO be
found.
"As far down ~ wickenburg, thirty
miles below. some lumber had been left on
a high bluff near the lower dam. which
was not reached by the water Cotiins are
being made of this and then foated down
stream TO where bodies are found. the latter
being buried where found.
The bodies. when found. had oil been
badly mutilsted, some even beyond recog-
milton, excepting that OF the little 2-year-
old baby OF Mr.. Haynes family. IL was
found at Wickenburg. thirty miles below.
where the family were when the water
struck them and sweps them al out OF ex-
issence. This body when found was per-
fectly nude. bat beyond few scratches
was otherwise unmarked. aud looked as
peaceful aud calm - though asleep.
Thirty-seven bodies in all have been
recovered"
Survivors Who arrived there yesterday
sneak In terms Of praise Of Adiutans-fien-
era, w. O. o'Seili, who organized the party
for the search and burial OF the dead, and
Who has worked fncessantiy Almost day
and night
Seventy Deaths ~ walnut Grove.
PH0sfx, Arix. Feb. z7.--Sherid O'SsiIl.