Evening star., 1897-02-24
DANGER is PAST
The Flood is a Foot Lower Than the
Highest Yesterday.
| TREMENDOUS RUSH OF WATERS
No Serious Damage Done Along
the River Front.
HIGH WATER U UPSTREA A NJ

The water in the river rose last night
several inches higher than it was at the
time The Star went to press, but did not
cause any damage to property on the
wharves at the foot of 7th and other
streets. Some of the persons doing bnsi-
ness there had their movable property
taken to higher ground, but later devei-
opments showed that there was no neces-
sty for the precautiOn.
Today the river has Eeen gradually fall
ing, and at 1 o'clock this afternoon, which
'. as the period of high tide, and when there
was the most danger to be feared from the
TIL leatened flood, the water at the foot of
7th street was twelve inches lower than
the highest point reached yesterday.
While the height of the flood is watched
with interest at all points on the line of the
river, the sure judge of the height of the
water at this place is the height at Harpers
Ferry. So long as the water does not reach
an extraordinary height al that place, there
appears to be very little danger along the
water front of Washington and George
town.
Happy Conditions.
The Shenandoah river. fortunately for the
local property owners, did not do much
damage as was thought and to this fact is
attributed the comparatively low height Of
the water at this city to the height reached
at other places farther up stream. The
Shenandoah river enters the Potomac at
Harper's Ferry. The high water of the
upper Potomac was coming down, and the
great danger to the wharf property at this
place in the fact that if the Shenan-
doah was at flood height and turned its
overflow into the flooded Potomac the vol
ume of water would deuge the wharves
and lower streets, and equal, If it not ex-
ceed, the big flood of 1889. Fortunately it
happened that while the Shenandoah river
high, the water began to recede be
fore the high waters of the Potomac
reached Harper's Ferry, and as result
the water did not reach an extra height,
but remained in high and turbulent con-
dtion.
General Manager G. L. Nicolson of the
Chesapeake and Ohio canal received this
encouraging report yesterday afternoon
This morning shortly before . o'clock he
received telegram from Harpers Ferry
stating that the water al that point had
RISEN very slowly since . o'clock this morn
lg, and that up to the time the telegram
was sent d fall of four inches had been re
corded. The signal office, however, receiv-
ed a report that the his hest point had been
reached in the river at that place at >
o'clock this m, rning, wnen the heiSnt was
twenty three and a half feet above the
normal. At 10 last evening the water at
the same place was fraction over twenty
two feet high Another telegram received
by Mr.. NicClson stated that at Williams
port, Md, 100 miles from here, the water
began to fall a o'clock this morning, and
that at o'clock this morning it had fallen
fifteen inches. AT Hancock, Md, about 20
miles up, the receding commenced about .
o'clock last evening, when at that time the
water was just seven feet below the high
water mark of the flood of 1883.
No Great Damage.
The damage to the canal so far as learn
clirht md tha ar11
manager hopes that nothing more serious
will oco ur. AS yet it is too early to ascer-
tain what injury has been done to the
canal. From teleg rams received it is stat
ed that slight washouts have occurred near
Harper's Ferry, while no word has been re-
ceived at all from the points farther up
the canal. The corporation will feel
tremely lAcky if no further damage is re-
ported, though 1t seems impossible for the
canal to escape with such high water.
Along the Georgetown river front the
flood reached a height of few inches over
FIVE feet about 10 o'clock this morning, and
is still gradually rising. Flood tide was ex-
pected about o'clock, and those along the
water front predicted that at that time
the river would reach Its greatest height.
Reports from Great Falls to the aqueduct
office show the water was 1876 feet above
datum, as it is expressed, which would
mean about six feet above the dam which
diverts the water supply for this city.
Fortunately the Improvements in raising
the dam to increase the water supply have
been completed and it is expected that
little or no damage will be done to 1t.
Very little damage has been done to local
wharf property in GEORGETOWN and no arti
cles of value have been reported as wash
ed away or lost. Several scows which
were moored near the Aqueduct bridge
broke loose yesterday. One struck against
the shoal of rocks on AnaloStan Island,
there,
while the water dashed over its sides.
The other scow lodged on the flats this
side of the Long bridge.
The Flood Scene.
1t was we'll worth a visit to the river
front today to witness the sight of the
flood. The water came down with rush,
the current being fully ten or twelve miles
an hour, and sweeping on like a monster.
There was driftwood in abundance, and
logs borne rapidly downward toward the
bay were seen everywhere, with occasion
ally whole tree to vary the scene. Out
toward the center OF the river there ap-
peared to be nothing that could resist the
force Of the water, and no one was willing
to risk crossing the stream in boat.
Along the shore the current was more
quiet, and the water gradually surged in
with gentle ripples, creeping upward stead
ily while large numbers Of people Witness
ed the sight from all Of the wharves.
The water yesterday began to slowly
crawl upward and it was not long before
the height was above the level of the
wharves. The entire river front Of George
town was submerged, though up to IL
o'clock this morning the water was still a
good distance from Water street. The low
places suffered the most. The Potomac
Boat Club house entirely submerged,
or, at least. the first floor was Before
| noon the water was nearly three feet deep
in the structure. the front doors being left
open to give the water passageway. The
boat house of the Columbia Athletic Club
being several feet higher escaped the high
water, which, however. crept up as far as
the sills. The Golfer dam which for sew
eral years has been around the damaged
fourth pier of the Aqueduct bridge was
entirely submerged, and the small sheds
erected On the dam looked lost out In the
| seething waters
The report received by the weather bu-
andoah indicate a tremendous rise of water
in that river. No mails have come across
the river by stage from Winchester for
several days.
The reports received by the weather bu-
reau today is that the river is falling slow
lyeat Harper's Ferry. 1t reached Its high
| est point last night at o'clock, when the