The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-02-25
WORSTSTORMN MNYRARS
Southern California Swept b
Wind and Water.
GREAT DAMAGE gvERywHERG
Railroad Lines Dcmoralised, Tracks
Carried Away for Miles.
Months wm Ne Required - Rsplsse
Bridges ssd works Destroyed by -
Floods-rrsins Cannot x1n fer Days
Little Less Of Life Repsatsas

Little Less Of Life Repsstsds
YrxA, A. T., Feb. 24-Late Saturday
night fears began Of trouble from . rise II
the Gila. which empties into the COLORADO
near town. The work Of strengthening
the levee at once began, and continued
with energy Sunday morning. The leveo
is old and weak. No work has been done
on IL since the food Of 1854. Sunday
noon the best-informed citizens said every.
body must 60 to work. All the men were
pressed into the service possible. The
river kept on rising rapidly, . foot an
hour.
Shortly after noon the ccnvicts Of thes
penitentiary were taken out and set 70
work and the efforts Of the citizens were
redoubied. At O'Clock leading mer-
chant said the levee must surely 70 ana
began banking up in front Of stores o.
Main street Work was suspended ana
the people in threatened districts boeAa
moving to higher ground
The levee broke about o'clock. With
in an hour half the town was under w11er.
The hastily constructed 1evee on the west
side of Main street slipped. A further
spread of sacks of fiour. bran and meal wno
taken from the stores and piled up with
dirt to form levee. The houses Of The
town. mostly adobe. are filed with water.
Amid the noise Of falling walls and the
screams of women and children, the houses
went down. melting like sugar in the wa-
ter, which was ten feet deep in places.
Many people had no time to get ont furnf-
ture and lost all One hundred house1
were ruined. One family was at srrppar
when the water rushed in at the doors,
and it was UP to their knees befcro they
could get out.
A man in . saloon, named Gus Lees
was drowned. No other loss of life ID ~
ported. A sick man was carried by hio
daughter to hill and placed on mnttren
while she returned to get the things out q
the house. The railroad Office and telo-
graph Office were driven out. The Isves %
the Colorado side Was cut and the watsgs
inside kept from rising. The water Moa-
day morning had fallen two feet.
The flooded district, mostly inhabited
by Mexican families and some Amarieann.
occupies some 160 acres. The zimss Ones
was completely wrecked, but that papae
Issued half today from the &snsfnss
Office. Nearly all business Was destroyed.
including machine shop, ssddleFy, 50aR
saloons. three general merchandise, tWo
drug stores. the Times ncwspapef, two
butcher shops, and Chinese wash -h0uea-
People are camped on the hills, and t1ho
United States quartermaster's buiidinGD
are thrown open. There il much de0tfku-
ton. but there is no suffering - ThGgo
IL plenty of groceries, provisions and ffsuns
meats. A board Of trade meeting Mo111o4
made liberal donation for the sufferers
A relief committee has been organised ~
the citizens. John Gandolfo. the 1arDt
merchant, says his store belongs 20 tn
people, and goods are given to AL ap0ly-
ing. The country east is all under wsteg
for miles, as far as heard from. Me4gG9
reports are received, but the loss II prop.
erty and livestock in the Gila valley wiz
be immense.
Reports reached town today Of anothes
rise in the Gila, higher than Sunday.
The leyee on Main street has been made
eight feet higher. and most IL the p1opls
in the balance Of the town have moved -
high ground. A rise is also reported il
the Colorado. II this is true but ittle -
Yuma will be left. There hAve beon
no trains since Monday morn
ing, the last train from
San Francisco. The bridge ACROSS the Cox
orado is safe, but may go if the Coinrndo
river rises. There are provisions enough
in town to last . week. A freight train
loaded with groceries win be taken IL nee
essary. The weather il clear and cool, an4
there is but little sickness.
Latest reports up the Gila say the sivse
is still rising.
Los ANGELES. Feb. el-The present
storm is one Of the worst in the history q
this section. But little damage has -
suited in the city proper, but on the nvex
front the damage is considerable. An
railroad bridges are damaged. and in soEne
cases swept away, but il il believed COR
munication viii be restored tomorrow.
News from the surrounding country y
very meagre owing to the telegraph viEse
being down, but 80 far ~ received the out
look is not encouraging. There are many
rumors and reports Of loss Of life, but the
only cases so far authenticated axe tho
drowning of wsn named Wills, with hiD
wife and child near Wilmington
Undoubtiy there Is great damage t.
orchards and ranches south Of the city
where the floods In San Gabriel are tho
worst in years. Many houses ara damage4
live stock drowned and fences and out-
buildings destroyed.
Railroads expect to have local traino
running tomorrow. Nothing il known q
affairs on the Santa Fe east Of the canyua.
The cuts are badly fIled and il has taksn
some time to clear ont the banks betWeon
this city and San Diego.
San FRAscIsco, Feb. N--Ths latestEe
ports show that the storm Is about ovs1.
Serious damage has been done to railway
property, especially in the southern por
ton of the state.
Solidad canyon, on the line entering Ins
Angeles from this city, - IN almost - ba4
a condition as last year. Much Of the new
and costly work which required tea
months to complete has suffered from tho
storm Two hundred feet cf the bridge
west Of Los Angeles has bean carried awsy
and the track washed out The pile WORK
is broken up, and the tunnel ~ the e.
trance 20 the canyon damaged
On the Yuma division eight bents o. .
big bridge were destroyed, and the frsck -
six feet out Of line in many places Br1deee
near Monte were also swept away. 1nroe
washonts Of serious nature have occurred
between Pomona and Cucamonga, sn4
east Of Cotton 80 feet Of track. the round
house, sidings and everything m0vsn1o
have been carried away oy Wa1exA y
tween Cotton and Banning several oE1dee
have been weakened
On the Santa Ana branch the track =
under water for long stretches, ana =
some places has been swepf away. s0utn
OF Downey station the new raafsoad brla9c
is destroyed and the toMn itsen = noodea
Between Seven Palms sud Iuma -