The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-05-28

said to have been killed: the Baltimore
& Ohio round house, the Standard Oil
works. East st. Louis elevator and
twelve other freight houses on the
levee are destroyed.
It is difficult to estimate the number
of dead and wounded, but rough
estimate would place the number at
about 1000 Both the Western Union
and Postal companies have lost every
wire out of the city.
One of the worst features of the dis
aster is thought to have taken place
at the race track at ST. Louis, where
races were in full swing and the grand
stand was crowded with people Re-
turns from the st. Louis races are re-
ceived at the track at Lakeside, Ind,
and a few minutes after o'clock the
operator sending the report of the
remark: There goes the grand stand"
and then his wire. collapsed and moth
ing more was heard from him. In a
few seconds the same message was re-
ported from Lexington. KY, with the
additional information that fully $50
people were dead. This was subse-
quently corroborated by the operator
of the Wabash road at Decatur, who
said that in his second message re-
ceived from East aSt. Louis it was de-
clared that the grand stand at the
races was down, and that fully $50 peo-
pie were
BURIED IN THE RUINS.
A few minutes after 5 o'clock the
operator of the Associated Press at ST
Louis, who was taking the usual re-
port, sent word that it was growing
very dark and asked for minute S
delay, that he might provide himself
with light. In a second more the
wire snapped, and it was impossible
to get any further information from
him or out of the town.
The local weather office In this city
was unable to give any information
regarding the storm, as the
officer, in charge was informed
early In the evening by the
Western Union that 1t would not be
able to send the usual weather bulle-
tins from ST. Louis. 1t was said, how
ever, at the local Office that the condi-
tions had been all day very favorable
for severe storms all through Missouri
and Southern Illinois.
It is thought that the storm swept
over ST. Louis from the northwest to
the southeast, as 1T is considered prob
able that the storm which was re-
ported in the afternoon at Rush Hill,
Mo-, would require several hours to
reach ST. Louis, and the storm at the
two points is reported as having been
long enough apart to enable the storm
to cover the distance between Rush
Hill and StLouis. The storm which tore
through the country south of Centralia
is said to have occurred at about 6
o'clock, or an hour after ST. Louis was
devastated. These three points are in
direct line from the northwest to the
southeast, and the weather officials
are inclined to believe the storm was
one and the same.
The Eads bridgsss which is reported
as having been badly damaged, was
built in 1873, and was considered one
of the strongest arch bridges in the
world. 1t was built without a draw,
and rose to an elevation in the center
and sloped down to the shore on either
side. There was upon it a double rail-
road track, which was used by the
trains Of the Wabash and the Alton
railroads, a double passageway for
wagons and double pathway for pc
destrians. From the reports received
1t Is not thought that it is so seriously
damaged as to delay the train service
of the roads which use 1t to any large
extent
At midnight it was reported at the
dispatcher's office of the Wabash road
at Forest, ILL.,, that it was impossible
to reach any point further south than
Nameoki, which is nine miles north
east from East ST. Louis. The oper-
ator at that point said that up to mid
night 1t had been impossible to obtain
any definite information from ST. Louis,
but it was certain that fearful damage
had been done. He said that the
RUINS WE'RE ON FIRE
at East st. Louis, and burning fiercely,
but he could tell nothing more than
that He had not been able to obtain
any information from any Of the Wa
bash trains that had passed his sta
ton since o'clock in the afternoon.
The report of the damage to the
bridge and the estimates Of the number
Of the dead and wounded, he said, were
not confirmed with any accuracy.
RUIN REIGNs SUPREME.