The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-07-12
DEATH AND DESOLATION
Mark the Path of Cyclone in
Northwestern Iowa.
The Village of Pomeroy Wiped Out of
Existence-The Streets Filled
With Dead and Wounded
People,.
Fifty-three Persons Killed, seventy-five
Fatally Hurt and Over One Hundred
More or Less Injured Thrilling
Description of the Awful
Catastrophe.

Ohthslrophos
PoMERoY Ia, July S.-Fifty-three
dead seventy-fve fatally injured and
$50 with broken limbs, cuts and bruises
MORE or less severe. This is what the
tornado of Thursday night accom-
plished in the matter of casualty. The
town of Pomeroy is one complete
wreck. There is scarcely a house left
standing. About fifteen acres of debris
constitutes now what was Thursday
thriving village. Splinters are all that
remain.
Pomeroy is part and parcel Of the
prairie, the death-dealing wind having
left it barren and desolate. Scarcely
tree remains. iPles of broken timbers
and an occasional piece 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 destroyed, and the money loss on
these and their contents is placed at
$780, 900.
FT. DODGE, Ia, July s.-The utmost
confusion followed the advent of the
storm, and it was several hours before
the condition of affairs at Pomeroy was
known. AS soon as the true state of
affairs was learned relief trains over
the Illinois Central were sent out with
corps of physicians, tents and pro-
visions.
The town was in total darkness and
the streets were filed with the wrecks
of homes and business houses. The
scenes were appalling as men with Ian
terms went about in the debris. In
some instances entire families are
wiped out, the mangled remains being
found in the ruin of their homes. The
cries of the injured were heartrending,
and the general confusion was in
creased by the wailing of the survivors
who were separated from friends or
who had relatives in the wrecks. The
work of rescue was slow and the train
load of helpers made little headway.
The south half of the town was
razed. There was no place there to
care for the injured and church which
was just outside the track of the storm
was turned into hospital. In here
the surgeons worked by the aid of Ian
terms and lamps. Those with broken
bones were stretched upon the long
pews, while others who needed surgi-
cal attention on less severe injuries
were compelled to stand or lie upon the
floor and await ther turn. The dead
were laid out upon the ground in a
vacant lot at the edge OF the devas-
tated district. Through the narrow
aisles left between the dead bodies the
survivors passed looking for lost ones.
In the confusion it was impossible to
secure list of the fatalities. All tele-
graph communication was cut off and
trains could only be run to the edge of
the town. The storm broke about Z
o'clock All day long the clouds were
scurrying across the sky. An OCCASION
al shower would be followed by hot
burst of sunshine. Just before dark
great banks Of black clouds massed in
the southwest and another in the west.
Just before o'clock the two threat
ening piles moved toward one another
and then Joined. The clouds took on a
green tint, which was pierced with the
suns rays for a moment. Then dark
ness set in rapidly. The elements
seemed to form about the combined
clouds, though scarcely a breeze stirred
the tree tops in the streets of Pomeroy.
Those who were watching the phenom-
ena say that a column of smoke like a
cloud dropped TO the ground and gath
cred in strength as it advanced toward
the town. They recognized 1t as cy-
clone and gave the alarm. Many sought
shelter in cellars and others mounted
horses TO flee from the path of the COM
ing destruction. There was dash OF
hail, binding flash of lightning and
deafening peal of thunder.
Men and women ran wildly about
the streets shouting and gesticulat-
ing. The cyclone struck the town
at the southwest among the scat
tering houses in the outskirts. Roofs
and shingles and sides of buildings
were wrenehed loose and were thrown
10 one side. On TO the more densely
populated district the monster OF de
struction swept, leveling all before II
and leaving in its wake a cloud Of
splinters and wrecked homes, death
and Generalization.
FONDA, Ia, July s.-The tornado
passed west and south Of this place be
tween and Z o'clock Thursday even
ing, demolishing buildings and groves
injuring many persons and causing the
loss Of many lives.
Farm buildings were razed to the
ground and cattle destroyed, trees up
rooted, fences leveled and general
havoc created over the small area GOV
cred. Beyond and south Of the towr
Of Auralia the storm worked It's fury
in comparatively thiclsly settled
neighborhood, and here the greatest
loss of life was inflicted, It is known
positively that fifteen more people hnv,
been killed there.
Not for years has this section beer
visited by such terrible and sweep
ing calamity.