Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1891-03-05
YUMA IN RUINS.

Nearly Three Hundred Ruined Houses In
Yuma, Ariz.. and Several Hundred Peo--
pie Homeless the Result of the I'm
precedented Rise in the Characterization
in the ella Valley-Hundreds of Cocopaha
Indians Drowned.
YUMA, Ariz., March 2.-Over $50
houses are in ruins in this place and
], 400 people are homeless. 1t is feared
that hundreds of lives have been lost in
the valley. No reliable reports can be
obtained from that locality as the
roads are impossible and all the wires
are down. Above Yuma the river is
miles wide. and below the town the
water covers the country as one grand
lake over 80 miles across. Over 1000
persons are being fed daily at the
Southern Pacific, and the town has
provisions sufficiently for eight days
more The blockade of wcst-bound
trains. it is expected. will be raised in
about four days, but it will be at least.
two weeks before they can go east.
Reports from Jal1uno, seventeen
miles above here, are to the effect that
the flood drove the people into the nils.
1t is estimated that anywhere between
thirty and 100 lives We're lost in the
valley Desolation reigns supreme all
along the valley.
Every house on the hills has been
thrown open to receive the homeless,
and hundreds are quartered in tents
and in the old government building.
The merchants have opened their goods
in the streets in order to help the suf-
ferers. The water is still high for 200
miles east of this point. and, as all OF
this must pass here, many fear that the
worst Is yet to come. The losses IN
this county will foot up nearly $4,000
900 and the damage suffered by the rail-
road company will amount to more
than $3.50,
The common loss has brought all
classes of citizens together, and all
have worked with will, first in trying
to save the town by constructing
rude levee, and when that effort proved
futile. in saving as much as possible
from the ruins. The old town will
probably not be rebuilt, as both mer-
chants and residents will erect their
stores and houses on the hills in order
to get out of reach of any further dam
age. In this city the ruin has been al
most complete. the Catholic church be-
ing the only building left standing in
the wear of the waves for many hours,
but finally crumbled into ruins. The
Yuma Sentinel moved it's Office four
time yesterday, but finally succeeded in
getting out on the hill to-day. The
Times was less fortunate, and it's office
and material went down in the wreck.
Fears were entertained that the fine
railroad bridge would be carried away,
but fortunately the piers stood the test,
and unless some extra heavy wrecllage
should lodge on the superstructure and
cause a dam it will not be injured.
The officers of Fort Yuma have done
everything in their power to assist the
sufferers, and fortunately there was a
good supply of tents on hand. and these
were at once placed at the disposal of
the homeless families, and much suffer-
ing thereby prevented. Should there.
be no further rainfall it is hoped that
there will be little further loss, and
that with the restoring of communica-
tons with the west, sufficient relief will
be brought in from San Francisco and
Los Angeles to prevent any serious
trouble.
A boat which arrived yesterday from
Mohawk, 60 miles up the ella river,
brings reports of terrible loss of life,
all through the country under water.
The greatest sufferers are the poor
Mexicans whose houses have been swept
away and who have nothing to put on
their backs
The loss will probably prove of ap-
palIlng magnitude. Reports from the
valley of the Colorado below this place
state that hundreds of the Cocopaha
Indians have been drowned. They are
located about 90 miles south of here,
and their tribe is about 5000 strong.
Their villages are all on low land, and as
there are no hills on which the Indians
could take refuge an immense number
of them must have been caught in the
flood and swept away. The water rose
six feet in twelve hours, and came on
them almost without warning.