The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1892-06-08
TERRIBLE.
OIL CITY'S AWFUL
HOLOCAUST.
FLOOD AND FIRE F.!
Sixty Persons Reported. Dead
and scores Injured,
An Awful Experience that
None Will Forget in
a Lifetime.

The most appalling calamity IN the MS
tory of Oil City fell upon it Sunday, re-
sulting in the destruction of life and prop
erty to an extent which as yet can only
be approximated. Thus far about fifty
lives are known to have been lost
AT 11:3O a. m. large pro-
portion of the population of the
city was distributed along the banks
and bridges of the Allegheny river
and Oil Creek, watching the rise of the
flood in both streams, the chief cause of
the rise of the latter being due to cloud
burst above Mtusville Saturday night.
At the hour mentioned an ominous COW
ering of oil made its appearance
ON the crest of the flood
flowing down the Oil Creek Valley and
the danger foreboding waves of gas from
distillate and benzine could be seen
above the surface of the strem.
PEOPLE BEGAN TO FALL DACK
from the bridge and the creek but they
had hardly begun to do so when an ex-
plosion was heard up the stream, which
was radidly followed by two others and
quick as flash of lightning the creek for
distance of two miles was filled with
an awful mass of roaring flames and
bellows of smoke that rolled high above
the creek and river hills. No pen can
picture the scene then witnessed-one
that will always live in the memory of
those who saw it, Oil City, it may be
stated for strangers who read this, is
bounded ON all sides by steep hills. Oil
Creek comes down the valley from the
north and just before its confluence here
with the Allegheny is crossed by a bridge
to the portion of the city embraced in the
Third Ward, which lies along the west
bank of the creek and the north bank of
the river. Nearly all that portion of the
town was ON fire within few minutes
from the time of the explosion and no
one knows as yet how many of the inhab-
itants are ashes in the ruins of their
homes.
A BLIZZARD representative stood at the
time of the first explosion at the east end
of the Creek bridge mentioned. Almost
as quickly as the words can be written
fully five thousand people in that portion
of the town were wild with. terror and
rushing TO the hills. Men forgot that
they were men and scores of them, to-
gether with women and children, were
knocked down and trampled upon both
by horses and people in the mad flight
for nlacas Of aafatV Inst as
THIS FRANTIC MASS OF HUMANITY.
Had started up Centre street the
second explosion occurred, knocking
many people down shattering the win
dows in the main part of town and al
most transforming day 10 night with the
immense expanse of smoke preceding
the second burst of flame. Many thought
THE DAY OF JUDGMENT HAD COME.
ahd many prayers were heard mingling
with the means and lamentations of the
fleeing multitude. The heaG was intense
and the wierd and awful spectacle pre-
sented to the panic stricken stricken
people was that cloud-burst of fire bOr-
dered and overcapped by great canopy
of dense black smoke, was falling upon
the city. IL was no wonder that
PEOPLE wEPF AND TAINTED,
and, leaving everything behind them,
ran or were helped away to the hills.
And after they were out of danger and
before, came the anxiety and suspense as
to relatives and friends who had been
along the creek watching the flood when
the avalanche of fame came. They
have since continued the search for the
missing ones, and the city to-day, like
last night, is full of The searchers.
THE FLOOD IN THE VALLEY
had inundated the upper portion OF
town, flooding from fifty to seventy-five
houses along North Sentca street. The
mo- of their inmates reached places OF