The herald., 1896-05-28
ON THE GROUND
Tho Destruction Too Great for Any Present
Estimate

ON THE GROUND
Tho Destruction Too Great for Any Present
Estimate
ST. LOUIS, Mo-, May 26.-Death and
| destruction reign supreme in st. Louis
and vicinity tonight, as a result of the
most disastrous storm that ever visited
this section of the country. So wide
| spread Is the destruction in both st.
Louis and East st. Louis that it is i'm
| possible to even estimate the amount Of
damage and loss Of life. Buildings of
| every description are in ruins, and as
| result hundreds of people are reported
dead and injured, but until daylight
| comes and order is restored it will be
| impossible to make definite statements.
Reports are in circulation that seven
| steamers lying at wharves both on this
and on the East st. Louis side Of the
| river have been sunk with all on board.
| The city is nearly in darkness as the
electric lights and trolley wires are
down. With one or two exceptions all
| the street car lines In the city are at
standstill and thousands of people are
#, compelled to remain down town or walk.
The storm broke about o'clock in the
afternoon, after most Oppressively hot
! day, and rain began to fall. 1t soon de-
| veloped into a fierce thunder storm.
with the wind from the east
| A little later the wind gained a veloc-
ity of eighty miles an hour, driving the
| rain before It and tearing loose signs.
| cornices, chimneys and everything in its
way. Many buildings of every descrip-
tion were demolished others set on fire
! by lightning and crossed wires. The
| fire department responded to f1fty-four
| alarms.
The streets were full of people going
| home from work, and a panic ensued as
| soon as the storm broke; men were
| picked up and hurled against the build
| ings, horses and carriages We're sent fly
ing here and there and falling wires full
Of deadly fuid added to the horror of the
scene. Suddenly the wind veered around
4 TO the west and completed the destruc-
! tion. 1t is asserted by some of those
who have traversed the down town part
| OF the city that there are few buildings
! in st. Louis that have not suffered in
some way from the storm.
Tonight the streets are in complete
darkness and travel in any direction
is dangerous by the falling of live wires
and debris The wagon way Of the Eads
bridge on the East ST Louis side is
crumbling mass of mortar and stone
and parts of the tower and pier No l
! lars Will not cover the wreckage.
AT outbound accommodation train on
the Chicago and Alton was wrecked by
broken rail, but fortunately nobody
among the fifty passengers was hurt
A trolley car loaded with passengers
bound to the southwest side is said to
have fallen through the railroad track
below, but with what result is not known.
| The roof of the Republican convention
! hall was blown off and 24-foot section
of the western wall of the city Jail was
blown clear down, exposing the interior
nica hnr, <xx-<,
hundred prisoners We're exercising in the
building. They were panic stricken and
too frightened to escape. Jailer Wag-
ner was on the scene in a moment and
with the aid of a number Of detectives
and policemen the prisoners were placed
in their cells.
The tanks of the Waters Pierce Oil
company, on Gratiot street. blew up,
spreading destruction on every hand.
Three stories of the Coe Manufacturing
company's building. Ninth and Gratiot
streets, and nearly all of the Wainwright
brewery were blown down.
The summer high school. Eleventh and
Spruce; McDermott's hotel, Central EN-
igrant, on the opposite corner; Jere Shee-
hans livery stable, Eleventh and Wal
nut, were unroofed.
The engineer of the Aetna Iron works,
! Twenty-first and Papin streets, was
instantly killed. The walls blew in and
he was scalded to death by steam.
The Consolidated Wire works Twenty
first and Papin streets, was almost to-
to have been injured seriously by this
wreck and many more are said to have
| been hurt by falling walls.
The two-story building of the c. II.
Sawyer Manufacturing company, 1919
Choteau avenue, was demolished. John
Sawyer a member of the firm. and Emma
| Cheney and Isabella Hamden, typewrit-
ers, were crushed to death under the
walls. H. HI. Sawyer, a member of the
| firm was fatally injured.
| The st. Louis Refrigerator and Wood
enware companys factory was COM
| pIetely destroyed by fire, caused by
| lightning. The loss is estimated at $780,,
| 900.
A rumor was widely circulated that
the gas tank near the Consolidated
Wire Works, at the south end cf
Twenty-first street viaduct, had been
blown over and fallen in on the wire
works building. killing four men to n
certainty and possibly more.
A. w. Becker of the big firm of j. p.
Becker & Co, Of East st. Louis. was
among the first persons to cross the
Eads bridge after the storm abated. His
family was in st. Louis, and in his
eagerness to get home he climbed over
the debris of the bridge on his hands
and knees. over wrecked cars, dead
horses, and mass of other debris. He
informed a reporter the condition of
East ST. Louis is almost beyond de-
scription. The town is wreck for
! blocks around. and the loss of life in that
region alone is estimated at from 20)
to 250.
The Vandalia freight house. near the
east end of the Eads bridge, was COM
pletely demolished, number Of persons
having gone down in the ruins.
When Becker left men We're engaged
in digging out the dead and dying, and
several bodies had been already remov-
ed. Mentz's store and the whole row
of brick buildings adjoining it were
razed to the ground, but no one was in
jured Another building was that of the
East st. Louis Journal. the whole mid
die portion of it being blown out. About
$4,000 worth of clothing was scattered
over East st. Louis The, city hall,
which had just been repaired, was COM