The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-07-28
GETHER in THE VICINITY OF
PITTSBURG.
THREE LIVES SNUFFED OUT.
PROPERTY LOSS NOT VET nETEn
MINED, BUT 1T WILL BE
LARGE.
NEW YORK IN ONE STORMS PATH.
Tree Blown Down, Killed One Man.
But no Other Fatalities Are
Reported.

PITTSBURG, Pa, July PA wind
ana rain storm of unusual fierceness
visited this city at 4:30 o'clock this af-
ternoon causing the loss Of at least
tnree lives and doing immense damage
10 property. Several dwellings were
completely demolished and others par
TALLY wrecked. Eight or ten churches
had their roofs blown off and other
wise damaged. Telegraph, telephone
and electric light poles were snapped
ike pipe stems, mixing the wires in an
1nextr1cable mass. Fierce lightning
and high winds accompanied the storm
or rather two storms, for Pittsburg
and Allegheny were the meeting place
OF one storm from the west which
came up the Ohio valley and another
from the east which followed the course
of the Allegheny river. Such battle
of the elements is rarely witnessed.
In East Pittsburg and Wilmerding hail
fell in large quantities, some of the
stones being quite large In the first
hVe minutes of the storm sS Of an
inch Of water fell and the wind reach
ed velocity of 80 miles an hour.
AT p. m, another storm, almost as
fierce as the first came up, and 6S of
an inch of water fell, making a total
of 1.33 The rivers are now rising and
another flood is expected.
Among the casualties reported is an
accident to the camp Of the Eighth
Ward Hunting and Fishing club, Of
Allegheny. The club was at its camp
in Sugar Grove about four miles up the
Allegheny river when the storm came
up. The members say it was a genuine
cyclone. The trees in the grove were
broken and twisted as though they
were weeds. and one large sycamore
was snapped off near the ground and
fell upon the tent of the campers. kill
ing almost instantly John Figus,
breaking the back of George Miller.
who will die, and seriously in:uring
Thomas O'Connell, Charles Kosack,
Jacob Metz, Frank OFT and Harry Had
ley.
On Garfield avenue in the east end
Joseph Ashfelder was killed by a sign
being blown down, striking him IN the
head. In Sharpsburg, w. L. Norr was
killed by the roof of a house being
blown onto him. At McKee's Rocks,
where Prof Gerodette, curator If Car
negie museum, had a gang of men at
work digging up an old Indian mound
In the interest of science, lightning
struck a tree under which they had
taken refuge, shocking one oe The labor
ers, an old man, into unconsc: :Ousness,
also young man by the name of Pool,
son of college professor, both of
whom will probably die.
The result of the storm in property
damage has not all been gathered in at
midnight, but it is known that all
through Allegheny, the South side and
the east end many houses We're Tin
rooted, signs blown down and windows
broken. Along Penn toward Home
wood, where many fine suburban man
sions are located, the splendid lawns
are completely destroyed and the beau
tiful shade and ornamental trees
ruined. 1t is estimated that 800 600
will hardly cover the loss in this local
ity alone. Reports from outlying towns
tell of much damage to houses and
other property, but no lives lost so far
as known.
In Allegheny twelve people were
struck by lightning. They are in the
hospital and considered by the ply
sicians to be in a critical condition.
Their names are Abner Hayes freight
receiver of the Fort Wayne railroad:
A. M. Bennett and three children; Au-
gust Snedz, his wife and their four
children.
Mr.. Hayes was standing in the freight
house door when a bolt of lightning
struck the building, knocking Mr..
Hayes unconscious. Mr.. Bennett and
his children were standing on their
porch on st. Clair terrace, when a flash
was conducted from a trolley wire in
front of the house close to the porch,
prostrating the entire party. The Snedz
family were eating supper when light
ming struck the residence, following the
chimney fue to the dining room.
About half an hour later a neighbor
discovered the White family lying On
the floor In an unconscious condition.
They may recover, but it is doubtful
In Pittsburg reports of damage to
property are still coming in. On Wash
ington street ten houses, a machine
shop, and the Fifth Presbyterian
church were blown down and com
pletely ruined, but fortunately no one
was injured. The row of houses be-
longed to the Dennis estate and had
been condemned and tenants removed
from them.
The M. E. church on Kirkpatrick
street had its roof and steeple carried
away by the wind, the bells from the
tower were thrown to the ground and
broken. The roof Of the John Wesley
chapel was torn away and carried 200
feet. The Pittsburg High school and
Holy Ghost college suffered somewhat
but are not badly damaged Returns
from the different sections of the two
cities show 25 or 80 people injured more
or less by falling trees, roofs, and
signs, but their names cannot be given
tonight
Western Newton. Pennsylvania, a
station on the Baltimore & Ohio about
80 miles east of here reports the rain
there very heavy. The telegram says:
l a. ma landslide 200 feet long and sew
eral feet deep is just reported here on the
Baltimore Ohio tracks at Osceola The New
York express, which left Pittsburg at o'clock,
Is stranded somewhere west of here Both
tracks are reported covered with trees and
rocks between here and Griffin Station, two
miles east.
The watchman of the Pemickey road At
Cedar Creek two miles east of here reached
town at l O'Clock and reports eight big land
slides there. He says the water came off the
hills like rivers. bringing everything with it.
He could not get around the slides, and had
to cross the river to get here.
STORM WAS SEVERE.