Great Falls weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1894-1???, 1894-12-07
TOOK A TUMBLE
Tacoma Visited Ly a Tidal Wave
Steamers Tossed About
Like Chips.
CHEAT LOSS or PROPERTY
Ocean Docks and Freight Houses Take
Slide Into the Bay-TWO
Persons Killed.

TACOMA, Nov. 30.-Anid the roar OF an
immense tidal wave beating against the
shores of Puget sound, 600 feet OF Ia
coma's docks plunged into Commence
ment bay at II o'clock Wednesday night.
Half a dozen steamers were tossed about
like chips and two were disabled. At
1:4Oa. m. the ti!led-in portion of the
ocean dock was still settling and the &C.
cident began to assume the form of a
calamity to the city. IL II. Algers' boat
house, containing himself, wife and six
children. was turned upside down, spill
ing the children out of their hunks into
the icy water, and it is feared one of his
daughters has been drowned. John Han
son Waterman at the Northern Pacific
hydraulic pump. went down il the de-
bris and cannot be found. For a dis
lance Of 500 feet the ocean dock had set
tied and it was feared the big elevators
and coal bunkers would pitch Into the
bay. All the cattle pens of the Northern
Pacific, together with the office and that
compauy's 400-foot freight house went
down together and fire at once broke
out where the pump station disappeared
in the debris. Nearly all of the dock
which fell into the bay is that portion of
the water front which the city has been
trying to secure from the railroad and
the Tacoma Land company. Investiga-
ton proves conc!usiyely that the land
slide was caused By either a tidal wave
OF an earthquake, Puget sound has very
steep shores. Just outslde the Northern
Pacific docks the bank slopes into deep
water at an angle OF IS degrees. Fifty
feet from the dock the water is 200 feet
deep, At great expense the railroad
had put in solid docks of made land,
supported on the water side by a rock
wall, built against piling driven into the
mud. This was not strong enough to
bear the immense pressure and when
the high bank further up had been made
slippery by recent rain, the outer edge
of the dock began to slide and finally
gave way. precipitating into deep water
one of the most valuable portions of the
water front. The submerged strip is
1.SOO feet long and 200 feet in width.
Two persons were killed, the - year-old
step daughter Of H. II. Alger, the boat
hodse proprietor, and John Hanson. a
night Waterman, who was carried down
with the engine house containing the
boiler and pumps. which furnished the
power with which the bluff side was be-
ing washed down by the hydraulic pro-
cess. Neither of the bodies has been re-
covered. Superintendent McCabe says
the permanent damage to the railroad
docks will not amount to over $1,000
The rebuilding of the sea wall for l,SU'
feet will be deferred until the chief en-
gineer at st, Paul can decide what plar
shall be adopted to insure future per
manency. The south end of the SounC
freight warehouse. in which we're the
offices of the cashier and twenty freight
clerks. went down with a crash. Tht
safe contained 22.i00 in each and valua
bIe papers worth $4,000. 1t was sup
posed this safe ana the valuable freigh
records had hem sunk in 200 feet 0
water. but last evening the two stor.
building ID which the offices were 10
Gated was found partly submerged OF
the beach at Gig Eiarbor, eight mile
away. The safe and records are SUP
posed to De safe. a diver has been tele
graphed for to come and search 70
them. The damage to shipping, an
other losses is estimated at $4,000.