Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1890-04-20
TORNAD0ES.
THEY COULD NOT NJURE DENSE AND WELL
BUILT CITIES
Buildings With Solid Foundations and Honest
Walls Are Always Safe-Many Build
ings Destroyed in Louisville Were
Poorly Constructed.

Special telegram to the sunday Register
WAsmINGroN d. c., April ls.-It IS well
known that extended portions OF the
United States are especially liable TO tor
nadOes. Doubtless the severe storms on
March p which forcibly called the atten-
ton or the country TO this class OF destruct-
i've and violent phenomena, VIII be known
as the Louisville tornado. MeteOrOlogists
apply the term tornado TO cyclonic storms
OF local character, which have the pecu-
liaritv of excessive high wind currents
passing spirally inwards and upwards, and
when especially the direction OF these vlO-
lent winds is more nearly vertical tnan
horizontal. 1t seems probable 20 the
writer that the tornado is only more vlo-
lent and intense exhibition of thunder and
hail storm conditions. In thecase OF lorna
does. the enormous forces generated by the
disruption of very unstable atmospheric
conditions find effect in the development OF
violent whirlwinds, instead or forming hall
or inducing extraordinary electrical con.
ditiOns.
The most destructive tornado within
narrow limits in recent years was tnat OF
April Is. 1850. through which Marshfeld,
Mo, was almost entirely demolished, over
one hundred lives lost and several hundred
injured. On February 10, 1854, however,
an unparalleled series of tolnadoes occurred
i'm the interior part of North and South
Coroina and Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky
and Illinois, being most destructive IN the
four States first named The loss OF prop
erty was hardly greater than that eXpe-
rienced by the Louisville tornado, but the
loss of life doubtless exceeded five hun
dred. and the injured more than a thou
sand. @
Apart from Louisville. with its death
list of seventy-tive. that of Metropolis
douhtfully placed. and Cilascoe thirty we
tins. AT least twenty-five others were lost
i'm tormadoes developed on the evening OF
March y. The data concerning loss of life
and property is at this writing indefinite
and vague. save i'm the case of Louisville;
but at twenty widely separated points I'm
Kentucky. Tennessee. Indiana. Illinois and
Missouri, the total loss of life az
gregates over two hundred, with
more than one thousand houses
destroyed The entire valuation of
losses is estimated at three and half mil
lions probably it will not fall far short OF
that amount as the property loss IN Louis
vile was about two and hall millions,
and the exaggerated estimates from many
places will be cOuntcrbalanced by losses
not yet reported.
still prevails as to the distribution of lorna
does. that those serious and violent storms
occurred over section Of the country
where not a dozen, ana in some parts not
half dozen. of these storms have ever
been known. and this fact emphasizes the
minor importance which should be placed
bv the public in general on the imputation
that any country or State is afflicted with
frequent tOrnadOes. or the statement that
they are unknown.
Well defined tOrnadOCs were couhneG az
this time TO Kentucky, Tennessee, south
ern Indiana and southern Illinois. Severe
storms. however, prevailed during March
26th. 9th or 2Sth in Colorado. Kansas,
Missouri. Nebraska and Wisconsin, and
over the lake region. resulting in damage
to buildings and shipping. No lives, how
ever. were lost between the Missouri river
and the Rocky Mountains.
IL is of interest TO note that these lorna
does occurred neither during the months of
greatest frequency april 10 july, nor
during the hours of greatest frequency
1890 10 200 p. M. They c0nfomed,
however. i'm other respects 20 characters
tic tornado conditions; that IS they occur
red in the southeasterly quadrant OF a low
area storm, and instead OF being IN the I'M
mediate vicinity of a storm center, they
were several hundred miles 10 the south
eastward. The usual decided contrasts of
temperature and dew-points obtained:
warm southcrlywindsa and atmosphere near
lv or quite saturated with aqueous vapor in
the storm front; high, cold nOrthery
winds with low dew-pOints and quite dry
air directly i'm rear of the stOrm-center. The
tornad0es at Louisville and other adjacent
points were accompanied by the funnel
shaped cloud. which Terrell considers 10 be
enthusiastically tornado, and which APP
pears suspended from the lower surface
of stratum of dense clouds.
The sharp contrasts of temperature may
be illustrated by the conditions AT 5 p. m.
March 18th The air temperature al Louis
Vile was Is degrees. at indianapolis. 100
miles distant. a. degrees: at Cincinnati, ~
miles distant, As degrees making. IN the
first case. one degree change 10 every five
miles. and i'm the latter. TO every four
miles. At the same time, cold air, at or
near the freezing point, was violently
blowing i'm toward the storm center from
the northeast al Chicago. at the rate OF -
miles per hour. and from the northwest at
Springfield, Mo, with velocity of 80
miles. Warm air with temperature of a
DEGREES was also blowing AT Memphis. from
the southwest, with velocity of 40 miles;
and at Cairo with "a temperature of 80 de
grces and "a velocity of rs miles .
The meteorological conditions that morn
ing had been somewhat less violent, but
stin the contrasts of temperature and dew
points and the barrie gradients were suifi-
GENTLY marked 10 justify not only the gen
eral prediction OF the signal Office of vlo-
lent local storms for Illinois Kentucky.
Tennessee. Indiana. Ohio and Missouri, but
also the sending of special warning tele-
grams To this effect TO the Signal Service
Observers stationed in these States.
Under such violent atmospheric condi-
tons. disasters must soon come somewhere.
and it is not surprising that along "A narrow
path occurred this violent disruption.