St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-01-26
FLOODS FOLLOW SNOW
Heavy Rains Melt the Noun
tains Of White Flakes in
California.
Rivers Overflow and Wash
Heavy Bridges From Their
Supports.
One-Half Of the Fertile Sacra-
mento Valley Is Under
Water.
Relief Parties Out in Boats
Reseuing People From
Their Homes.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 25.-The warm
rains that have fallen in Northern Cali
fOrnia for the past two days have
melted large amount of snow in the
Sierra Nevada and Siskivou mountains
and caused the streams and rivers to
overflow their banks. The rain on the
mountains has now ceased. The dam
age will not be as great as feared
last night. The quick rise in the waters
has washed out many of the rail-
road bridges, filled the cuts and caused
land slides, and traffic on all the lines
in the northern portion of the state will
be impeded for several days. A num-
Der of flooded points report that
while the individual loss will be
great, the overlooking of the
lands by which several inches of rich
sediment is left on the farms will add
greatly to its valuation. AT the city of
San Jose the water is higher than ever
before known. At Santa Clara the
principal thOrOughfares are covered
with water for half a mile. The dis
trict north and south of San Jose is
flooded. Although three lines of rail
road operate between San Francisco
and San Jose, no trains were able to
move to-day, owing to the WaShouts
at Santa Cruz. This morning twenty
feet of the approach to the upper bridge
across the San Lorenzo river gave way,
rendering
THE BRIDGE INPASS ABLE.
AT the same hour 100 feet of the ap-
proach to the railroad bridge on the
Southern Pacific, at the mouth of the
river, which is supported by pill
ing, fell in. The water reached the
highest point ever known and over
flowed that portion of the city below
Elm street. At Emigrant Gap, in the
Sierra Nevada mountains, where the two
through trains are imprisoned. the
rain began falling yesterday afternoon,
but changed snow again during
the night. The Western Union linemen
report that the deepest snow is in the
vicinity of Tamarack. For more than a
mile not telegraph pole is in view,an
1t was necessary to dig a trench
through the SNOW more than twenty
feet deep in order to free the wires.
Provisions are very scarce at Emigrant
Gap, and if the road is not open by to-
morrow it will be necessary to bring up
supplies on snowshoes. At Chico, in
the Sacramento valley, the Sac
Tamento river is over its
banks aud is, flooding the entire coun-
Wy Ih6 ASdL Abs IL 10 SSSlihdOCu blldG
it is fifteen feet higher than 1t was dur
ing the laso flood. AT Redding and
Red Bluff, near the headWaters of the
Sacramento river, the water began to
SubSide this afternoon. All day and
last night the water stood from five to
six feet deep on over 10000 acres of
land III the Russian river valley. From
Geyserville to Healdsburg, a distance
of eight miles, it was vast sea
of water. Several sections of Alexan-
der valley bridge, the largest bridge in
the county, has been swept away. The
river spreads over an area of five miles
in width. At point on Dry creek it
Joins the Russian river. Three
miles south of Healdsburg it be-
came torrent, flooding the Dry Greek
VALLEY for many miles. Relief parties
were out in boats all day yesterday
rescuing people from their homes.
The houses of Joe Fitch and j. G. Keaue
near the river bank were swept away,
the former breaking to pieces as it
struck the railroad bridge, while the
latter, twO-story building, is lodged
against the bridge. This morning near
the cell. + of the river family was
rescued from building. At Knights
Ferry, on Stanislaus river, forty miles
south of Stockton, the people began
moving out of their houses in the lower
portion of the town this afternoon ow-
ing to the flood.