The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1897-05-08
SWIFT BY THE DELUGE.
DEATH, DESTRUCTION AND A NIGHT
OF TERROR AT GUTHRIE.
Farms Oblfterated, Occupants are
Drowned and Rescuers Perish
I'm Heroic Endeavors.

Gutherie, o. T., April 30.-Iror miles the
Canadian vailey a dreary waste, and
her people are overcast with gloom. At
sunrise mighty wall of water from six
to eight feet high and mile wide broke
upon West Guthrie without warning.
crushing houses, sweeping away properly
and drowning people by the score Every
movable tnIng was swept before the
wave which passed on into the valley
with resistless force, wreaking terrible
destruction to life and property wherever
| 1t reached.
Fully two-thirds of the victims were
colored people. Business has been sus-
pended all day in Guthrie. he stores and
! banks being closed. AS thorough an or
| ganization as possible has been made, but
all the aid has been necessarily retarded
by the congested condition of things. 1t
will be impossible to explore the houses
until the water shall subside. as many of
| them are submerged. AS darkness gath
cred over the scene many overturned
houses could be seen far out in the Hood
but ii could not be learned whether their
occupants escaped.
The Cottonwood river ordinarily a small
stream that winds between steep banks
in West Guthrie was bank full from a
heavy rain, but no alarm has been felt,
as the river had been rising gradually
during the night About o'clock how
ever waters from a cloudburst above
had added to those already nearly up 10
the level of the high banks, and the
flood was sweeping through West Guth-
RE, section populated mostly by col
ored people. Persons who saw the first
wall of water said that ii was Is inches
high, spreading entirely across the valley.
There was no water in front of it, save
that in the river channel. The first wave
was followed quickly by others in quick
succession until the whole swelled into
a bank of water from six to eight feet
high. Many had already begun carrying
household goods to places of safety, but
few had made more than one trip when
they were forced to flee for their lives be-
fore a raging, resstless torrent that no
power of man could hope to stay.
Improvised RATS were quickly thrown
together and started out into the mad
stream. Before many of them had been
propelled a couple of yards from shore
they were twisted and broken by the
waters, and the would-be rescuers thrown
into the stream. Half a dozen rescuers
were drowned even before those they had
tried to save had been reached.
Gus Platt, business manager of the
Guthrie Leader, and George Willis, q
merchant tailor. swan the river at the
risk of their lives and secured a boat by
> which a number Of persons We're saved.
negro woman with baby in her arms
desperately tried to steady herself in a
3 treetop, calling for help. She grew weak
and was drowned. She was finally res
2 cued and said her family of six had sue
cumbed.
A woman wadlng from her home with
her baby on her head was seen to 20
I under, and a man swimming the channel
7 trying to reach four women and baby
in a tree was carried down the stream.
Two women and child were carried
away on a bridge further down stream,
o and one man and two won9n, in plain
sight of shore were on house roof when
it went to pieces. They all persisted. AN
old negro woman was seen riding house
top. The building soon turned over and
she was drowned Three men. Waiter
! Odds, Vandusen and Eugene Gillian
sought to rescue an old man from a tree
, The raft struck an overhanging tree, AM
% they barely saved themselves by Chamber
= ing into another tree. They were finally
rescued on rope sent to them by means
of a shotgun and cord.
Two men secured a small sternwhee
pleasure boat and started to the rescue
of half dozen men and women LODGED
3 in a tree. The persons were rescued
u amid the cheers of the spectators The
IS cable holding the craft finally broke an.
/ it was carried down stream, but ulti
:; mately landed safely. Adjutant Genera
l. Jameson of the territorial militia barrel.
q; escaped with his family. He was forces
to wade and lead his horse with his ram
lily in a buggy
John Metz, aged SO, was capszed wnl
b. trying to save a woman, who sank be
lie fore he reached her. Metz himself wa
Y, barely rescued.
ne George Owens, Attorney league Ra
ne and Dick Pearson were precipitated int
X the water while trying to save some peo
pie, and Owens was drowned, The Hlf
and five children of Wesley McGlll, col
ored, were drowned in their home
Z. Gus Plat and George Willis swaf
s. through the current, cut a fiatboat froI
v its moorings and saved seven people
s. making a landing miles below the city
is Tonight 40 or so people could be see
IS clinging to trees and roofs of building
but could not be reached, and will hay
to spend the night where they are.
The strength of many will fail befol
morning If 1t does, nothing but water
ne grave awaits them. The fate of man
40 others who are known to have been ca
~ ried down stream will not be known unit
st daybreak, and perhaps not then. 1t
impossible to get any definite news fro
the hundreds of rescued people on II
bluffs west of the city. and those WI
re escaped are rushing frantically about
a search of missing ones.
n For 10 days the dust-parched Poop
h had looked aloft with discourageme
and prayed for rain to save their GRO
or quench their thirst, the case mig
be- The flood of water that finally pou
raj ed from the skies and wiped their HON
a and farms out of existence, and in mai
nd instances swept away human lives, prov
an answer to their supplications that {
most amounted to punishment. The nm
storm and flood came as a fitting clint
70 to a week of unusually heavy rains a
he damaging floods.