The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-07-08

PoMERol, Ia, July lone hundred
and eight dead. rs fatally injured and
l5O with broken limbs. cuts and bruises,
more or less severe. This is what the
tornado of last night accomplished in the
matter Of casualties. The town of
Pomeroy is one complete wreck. There
is scarcely house left standing. About
fifteen acres Of debris constitute now
what was yesterday thriving village.
Splinters are all that remain. Scarcely
q tree remains. Piles Of broken tim bers
ana occasional pieces of furniture are
all that can be found of what was once
the largest buildings in the place. Two
hundred and fifty houses were in all de.
stroyed and the money loss on these
ana their contents is placed at $500, 900.
The tornado, for such it was, came
from the northwest. All who saw it
agree that 1t WAC not of the funeral
shaped species, but came bounding
along the prairie like huge ball. 1t
was OF dark green color and was &C.
companied by terrific noise. Many
saw 1t when it was far out
OF town Those gave the alarm
and some were prepared for
the monster when it reached the
village. Most of the people, however,
became panic.stricken. They ran out
OF their houses and fled up the streets,
crying and shrieking till struck by
hying tim bers or whirling trees. The
cooler ones, however, especially those
VINO were near to them, made for two
caves In the southeast part of the town
built especially for just such occasions
as this
Into one of these caves collected
twenty five people, and in another one
i've, and all escaped without scratch
1t Is pretty we'll agreed that the tornado
struck the town about ESQ o'clock
HALF an hour before this it WAS exceeo-
ingly hot and sultry, and. save for
a few small clouds, there was no
evidence of the approaching whirl-
wind. The cyclone was but of lew
minutes duration and was fol- lowed
by terrific rain storm which continued
at intervals moro or less throughout
the night. The path OF the storm seems
to be about an eighth of mile wide
and twenty miles long. The death list
out In the country is heavy and many of
neighboring towns report many casual
ties. In Fairfield, Cherokee county.
the number Of the dead is fifty. Eight
more are reported killed at Storm Lake
and many other places have given
notice OF one or two deaths.
IL was not till noon to-day that the
work OF rescue really began. BY that
time there was good supply of doctors,
not large enough, however, TO care for
the wounded. The ladies OF Fort bod ge
went as nurses and there was a plenti.
full supply of bedding and food. AS
rapidly as possible the injured were
taken to improvi.ed hospitals and given
me dical attention.
The building was inadequate to the
needs of the injured. A company of
militia from Fort Dodge brought their
tents and these were used for h. spital
p rposes. The heat of the sun was
very great, the thermometer rising
among the nineties. The tents were
very hot and deaths among the in
jured were frequent.
The intense heat made it impossible
to keep the bodies of the dead and
those that were not claimed by relatives
or friends and by them buried or taken
away by noon, were placed in the grave
yards by officials. Forty graves were
dug and filled with the dead up TO Q
o'clock this evening, AMI at that hour
fittering lanterns in the cemetery
showed plainly that the work of buriais
was going on still. Several little babies
have been found alive and we'll, but it
has been impossible to find their par.
ents for them