The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1896-07-29

MORN STORM VICTIMS
Thirteen Carried Off with Board.
ing House at Cecil, Pa,
SEVEN OF TIE NUMBER DROWNED.

SEVEN OF TIE NUMBER DROWNED.
Heroic Sacrifices Of Two Men who, Hav-
ing Saved Themselves, Gave Up Thcir
Lives in superhuman Efforts to Hcscue
Others
PGTTsBrRG, July 29-Elght persons wore
drowned in the flood Monday night.
Seven uf these met death at Cecil, O min
ing and oil hamlet In Washington county,
the eighth victim going down at Carnegie.
The dead are Mrs. Samuel Mckinney,
80 yenrs old; Margaret Mckinney, her
daughter, 30; james Mckinney, her on,
s; Claude Beatty, n, oil well pumpcr, of
S~istersville, w. Va g. c. Higgins, 40, oil
well pumper, of Bradford, Pa. Vincent
Wilkinson, ", oil we'll employee, of No-
Wrinkle, Forest county, Pa Jennie
Holmes, Is, daughter of u Cecil county
miner John Wright (colored) n, employe
of u liveryman at Carnegie
Samuel Mckinney kept u boarding
house at Cecil for the accommodation OF
oil men and miners. The house was sit
uated on the banks Of Miller's run, d
tributary of CHARTERS creek. Ordinarily
the run, which flows through a valley
banked by high and steep hills, would
scarcely loat u chip, but Monday night u
cloudburst filed in its closely confined
quarters to such an extent that everything
along its banks was endangered.
There were thirteen people in the Nc
Kinney house when the waite commenced
to rise, but no serious danger was apprr-
hended. The men busted themselves chr.
rying the household goods to the second
floor, n the female portion Of the house
hold continued their dressing for tho
dance which was being held in a neighbOr-
ing hall Suddenly the house, u two story
frame, was washed from its foundation
into the seething waters and rapidly car
ried down stream. 1t was then too late
for any n in the house to escape
Below the site Of the house, about POO
yards, stands an old fashioned country
bridge, which spans the stream. The
house crashed against this structure, the
roof was torn OF and the rest Of the build
ing was crushed like an eggshell in bong
forced under the bridge, Higgins died
there, but Whitnor made IA most miracu-
lous escape. Just below the bridge the
wreckage Of the house struck On n sand
bar, with those of the party who were still
alive clinging 90 the pieces, with scarcely
a hope Of beinI rescued.
Thomas HAYES Vincent wilkinson and
others formed a rescuing party. Whitner
was rescued while fast i'm the wreckage by
wilkinson. who also dragged the dead
body of HIGGINS from its Judgment.
Samuel Mckinney was also saved by WIKI
inson. After assisting in other rescues
Wilkinson heard q CRY for help from the
,r,H.gfta It'll, Af tb, .tv..rv4 MD n,tzuvfth-
standing the extreme hazard attached to
the attempt the brave follow made the
effort to swim across with a rope. When
about half way over a log struck him on
the head md broke his neck. His body
was found several hundred yards below,
lodged in Il tree.
Clnudc Beatty WIS another hero of the
disaster who lost his life. He made siren
nous efforts TO save Margaret Mckinney
and Jennie Holmes, and had them lodged
In "a tree, when u wave came along and
swept all three Co death Beatty had sew
eral opportunities to save himself, but re-
fused to leave his weaker companions.
Those Of the unfortunate party who were
rescued were taken from the branches of
trees and portions of the wrecked house.
Wright, the colored liveryman, while
attempting TO drive across Il bridge at
Murray Hin, was caught by the high
water Of CHARTERS creek, near Carnegie,
and drowned,
Several houses in the valley were swept
away, but the occupants, so far Us learned,
all managed to seek places of snfetv before
their homes were carried down the stream.
Some of the o~ccupants were rescued in
skiffs.
Tho riggiug In mnnvoil wolfe vvas s,,,oDt
AWAY. and the men working about then.
yyer,. ~colnpelled TO flee for their lives IA
the torrent bore down the WILEY an its
course of death md destruction.
A tFllwood. Lawrence county. the pumn-
ing station was struck by LIGHTNING and
Charles Mitchell. the engineer. na1alvzed.
His condition is critical. At Turtle
Greek a new house WIS struck nv ligbt-
nine and demolished. Four children VIII
storm escaped injury.
In Fayette county, seven bridges were
- II -..-.u 1-t-.-Lw. r.-.-l ~