Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1896-05-29
AWFUL RUIN IN ST. LOUIS.
Over 500 Persons Killed by a
Cyclone.

The cyclonic disturbances which have
harassed the West for the past two weeks
reached an awful climax Wednesday after
noon, when two cyclones, one from the
northwest and the other from direct east,
met on the Illinois shore of the Missis-
sippi river and joined in a whirlng cloud
of death and destruction. The most fear
ful destruction was where st. Louis and
East st. Louis are separated by the river.
Here hundreds and perhaps thousands of
people were killed. the reports thus far re-
ceved indicating that East St. Louis Jared
worse, being nearly swept out of existence.
Churches and public buildings were thrown
down and the roof of the exposition build
ing was torn off, but of these minor hap
penings only meagre reports have been re-
ceived Fire broke out in East st. Louis
and swept the network of railroads, man
ufactories and residences which composed
the city. The path of the disturbance in
the beautiful Missouri city seemed to be at
least six miles wide.
The tornado was preceded by fierce
blow from the east Strong and steadily
the wind came and it swelled "a hurri
cane, and there were three distinct attacks
which ripped up roofs and commenced the
general destruction which followed. When
|
southwest, the tornado began its work of
destruction. 1t struck st. Louis on the
southwest, at a point just north of the
| Tower Grove park, and travelled in a north
easterly direction till it reached Grand
avenue. From there it followed Mill Creek
valley clear to the river, veering slightly to
the north, when it reached Tenth street.
AT the levee it swung around almost at a
| right angle and swept straight up the river
| to beyond Venice and Madison, where it
| veered to the east again. Judging from
the reports of the greatest damage done,
the path of the storm was on an average of
10 to II blocks wide. The worst damage
was done in path about six blocks wide,
extending eastward from Grand avenue to
Tenth street, from Lafayette avenue on the
south to the railroad track on the north.
At about every other block the wind seemed
to reach out and crush few buildings and
unroof residences outside of its main path.
Every wire along Choteau avenue from
Grand avenue east into Twelfth street was
down, and the poles and their freight of
cables were scattered along the streets.
How the storm Broke.
A light wind sprang up, and a sudden
darkness came upon the city. This dark
ness increased until the storm broke. 1t
gave the first alarm to the thousands of
people in the streets, at the pleasure parks,
in the light craft on the Mississippi, or at
work in the great mercantile establish
| ments. There seemed to be three separate
tornadoes. They came from the northwest,
the west and the southwest. When they
reached the Mississippi river they had be
come one. Its descent was so sudden that
the fleeing women and children were caught
in the streets and hurled to destruction, or
buried under falling walls. Before the mass
of clouds in the west, hanging over the vii
lagos of Clayton, Ferneridge, Eden and
Central, gave vent to their frightful con-
tents, the tunnels shot out from them.
Some of these seemed to be projected into
the air, others leaped to the earth, twist
ing and turning Lightning played about
! them and there was a marvellous electrical
display. Then came the outburst. Three
of the tunnels approached St. Louis, trav-
cling at the rate of eighty miles an hour.
From the clouds above a strange cracking
sound came. This filled the air, and at
times was stronger than the incessant peals
of thunder. The tunnels enveloped the
western side of the city, and in 80 minutes
were wreaking destruction.
So destructive was the cyclone, and so
irresistible and so much greater in magni-
tude than any other the country has pre-
viously known of, that some of the stanch-
est business blocks went down before it.
Iron beams were torn from their fastenings
and carried blocks away as if they were
feathers. Roofs braced and held to their
positions by every device known to the
best builders of any day, were torn off as
if held only by threads. Telegraph poles
fell in long rows, not coming down one by
one but in groups of dozen or more at a
time. The east end of the Eads bridge,
one of the most solid and finest bridges in
the world, was destroyed. Scores of per-
sons were drowned, or after being killed on
the land, they were blown into the water.
Steamers were blown high on the banks.
Others were turned around. Still others,
after being torn from their moorings, dis
appeared, and have not yet been heard
from. AS a rule, the smaller craft were
sunk. Not while within the city limits
did the tunnels rise and fall from the
ground, as is usually the case in tornadoes
in small places. There was no rebound
ing, and consequently whatever was in
the path of the wind was either destroyed
or badly injured. And this destruction
was done within an hour. The bells of
the city were pealing o'clock when the
worst of the storm had passed.
In East st. Louis the devastation was
| as great as in st. Louis proper Fire add
ed to the destruction, and as the streets
were Uttered with rubbish and debris, the
fire department was helpless. The loss by
fire alone will approximate S1,000,0O0.
Hundreds Dead and Injured.
The list of the dead discovered so far
falls below the first estimates, but is long
enough to be appalling. Crushed beneath
falling walls, hurled against the sides of
buildings, struck by flying timbers, cut by
shattered glass, shocked by the network of
electric wires, humanity suffered in ways
innumerable. The names of all the in
| jured will never be known. At six O'Clock
this morning it was estimated that 200 are
dead and 400 are injured in East st. Louis,
and So people are dead in the city of st.
Louis. This is a conservative estimate.
South st. Louis is a gigantic cemetery;
under the debris of the buildings of that
city are scores of burned, whose bodies
will not be brought to light for many days,
perhaps never. Just how many gave up
their lives in the waters of the Mississippi
when the tornado came down and tore all
the boats in the harbor from their moor
ings will never be known. The channel
is full of wreckage.
The Eads Bridge.
The St. Louis, or Eads, bridge, where so
many lives were lost Wednesday, is the great
railroad highway across the Mississippi,
from East St Louis to St LOuis IL was