The herald., 1894-03-31
FLOODS AND SNOWSLIDES.
Lives Lost and Property
Ruined in the Northwest.
A Great Number of Miners
Thrown Out of Work.
Several Hundred Volunteers Digging
for Dead People.
Bridges aud Railroad Tracks Destroyed
by Water In Oregon and Mines
Closed by Snsw In
Washington.
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
PORTLAND, Ore, March 30.-Word has
been received from La Grande that all
OF the Grande Ronde valley is lake,
La Grsnde and Island City being food
ed. The Oredell dam and both of the
dams near Perry are broken and the
railroad track is being cut away and the
cribs undermined. No trains were run
on the Elgin branch yesterday, owing
to the condition of the bridge between
La Grande and Island City. The bridge
on this branch went out this morning.
There are a number of washouts and
slides between La Grande and Perry.
There is also trouble at the bridge near
Wilbur. The cribs at Oredell and just
west OF Perry have caved in.
WALLACE, Idaho, March 30.-Between
Gem and Burke, in the heart OF the
Ceur d'Alene mining district, yester-
day. no less than ak destructive snow
slides rushed down into Canon creek.
As far as known five lives were lost, all
being killed by one avalanche, but re.
ports are current that two men we're
caught in another slide, which is quite
probable.
At $3.50 am. q slide started 1000 feet
above the creek at the head of the draw
in which the Black Bear mine is situ-
ated. AT the foot OF the draw four
shanties were smashed to pieces and
buried under 40 feet of snow, and one
was carried bodily forward across the
creek with but little damage.
In one of the buildings dwelt an
Tkal g., 1xx -
aged 25; his wife, aged %; their daugh-
ter, Victoria, aged years. and an
Italian, Martiuo Michele, aged "a. These
were all killed. The bodies of Mrs.
Deiro and her daughter have been re-
covered. The body of Mrs. Nellie Rowe
was also found, making a total number
of five persons killed.
] Immediately alter the slide occurred
/ standard mines, about 200 men. were
put to work to search for the missing
persons, and these were reinforced by
several hundred volunteers from Wal
lace, Gem and Burke.
Arthur Swayne, an inmate of one of
the cabins, was found at the surface but
| SO terribly injured that his recovery ia
uncertain. Two other men were par
tally covered with snow but were not
seriously hurt. Open cuts were made
by shoveling the snow to successive
benches and then drifts were run. in
search OF the demolished buildings. AS
many men as can work to advantage.
about 70. are still digging under 40 feet
OF snow in search of the bodies of the
missing men, but the water has risen SO
that it is from two to three feet deep in
the tunnels, which interferes seriously
with the work.
The man Michele was sleeping at the
time the slide occurred. The debris of
his bed were found early this morning,
but thus far the search for his body has
been fruitless.
The Frisco mine, employing 125 men.
lost by slides in different places from
1850 10 1000 feet of its hume. One OF
the elides, about mile above the Gem,
covers both the Union Pacific and
Northern Pacific tracks to the top of the
telegraph poles for distance of several
hundred feet.
This damned up the creek and for a
time threatened destruction to the towns
and property below. but the pent up
waters finally found passage under
meath. Two other slides have each COW
cred several hundred feet of the railroad
tracks to a considerable depth. This
will cut off railroad communication with
Burke and the Standard, Tiger and Poor
man mines for several weeks.
The Standard and Frisco mines, en-
ploying 800 men, have closed, and the
Tiger and Poorman must follow, as they
have no room for storage. Coming, as it
does, just when the mines were com
mencing an active campaign for the
season, the disaster is a serious blow to
the business interests Of all the mining
camps involved.