Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1896-05-04
A NIGHT OF TERROR.
Many Residents Driven from
Their Homes During a Terrific
Storm

Storm.
Sheboygan, Wis, April 29.-[Special.l
Last evening was one of terror to the
people residing along the banks of the
Sheboygan river and many of them
will not soon forget their experiences
during one of the worst storms that ever
visited this section. The storm was ac-
companied by a cloudburst and the
houses in the lowlands were soon flooded.
1t was necessary for the people to leave
their homes and seek safety in flight.
The damage to property will reach many
thousands of dollars.
The Cloudburst's Deluge.
The storm started about o'clock in
the evening. At first it appeared as
though the rain would not be of long
duration. About half an hour later,
however, the rain began to fall in tor
rents and in a short time the streets were
flooded so that the street cars were I'M
able to proceed on their way. About 10
o'clock the cloudburst came. The deluge
was terrible and people in many quarters
of the city were almost frightened to
death.
The greatest fear prevailed in the low
est district where the people had no pro-
lection from the terrific downpour of
rain. It was only matter of few
minutes when the lower portions of the
residences were submerged and men,
children and women were obliged to fee
for their lives from the buildings. In
many places the water had reached such
depth that the women could not get
out without the aid of boats and many
narrow escapes were recorded.
Police and Firemen at Work.
The police and fire departments were
called out and the men were formed into
corps. They had a number of RATS and
boats at their command and in this man
ner they soon succeeded in reScuing the
people from their dangerous positions.
Had it not been for the aid of the police
and fremen there would have been many
fatalities to report this morning. The
men acted IN a cool manner and worked
like beavers while the storm ragged at
it's height. The damage to residence
property will be quite large, although the
people were able to again occupy their
homes this morning, the water having re-
coded sufficiently.
The Northwestern Railway company
suffered a great loss. All the tracks in
the city are under water and it will be
at least two days before the company
can resume business, although trains will
be running again before night. The
yards are almost buried and the train
men have been going around on RATS
ell morning.
Railway Bridge Washed Out.
A washout occurred near the bridge
on Pennsylvania avenue and mud to a
depth of two feet was StreWn on the
bridge. The banks were also moved
away and trains cannot run until they
are repaired. The street cars will be
obliged to stop running until the mud
can be removed from the bridge. The
railway company estimates the damage
to it's property at several thousand dol
lars.
The greatest damage will be to the city
corporation. There were several streets
in course of repair and there were 9TH
ers which were being paved. This morn
ing some of the streets present the APP
pearance of miniature lakes. The ground
on Erie avenue for distance of quar-
ter of a block drifted over to the brick
yard of Mr.. Zurheide, about 80 feet
away. The yards were covered with
blocks and dirt. In other places the
blocks drifted away and some of them
were lost in the shuttle. The work will
have to be all done over again and the
loss to the city will be very heavy.
Factories Are Flooded.
The Mattoon, Phoenix and Croker
lower floors being flooded. In some
places the water is six feet deep and the
workmen are making the rounds ON
RATS. The boilers in the three factories
are submerged and it will be impossible
to get them in running order inside CT
two or three days. There were many
hundreds of chairs stored in the lower
floors Of the NATION factory and the
damage to the company will be large.
The owners say they cannot estimate
their loss at present as they do not
know to what extent the furniture has
been harmed. AS the street railway de-
ponds upon the NATION company for
power there will probably be no. cars
running until the boilers in the factory
can be got in order. Last night no cars
were run after 10 O'Clock.
It is expected that the street lights
will be in working order by this evening.
The manager of the Electric Lighting
company has made arrangements with
other parties to furnish sufficient power
to light the city streets. A strong eff
fort is also being made to have the
street cars running before night, but the
chances are against it.
Buildings Struck by Lightning.
There were many buildings struck by
lightning and badly damaged. City
Electrician Wilkes house was struck
early in the evening and was badly
wrecked Anton Bulls barn was struck
and burned to the ground, together with
all the contents Another barn and
dwelling in the northern part of the
city were struck, the barn being burned.
Several houses were damaged to a con-
siderable extent No accidents of any
consequence was reported.