The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-04-01
DEATH and Ruin
A Cyclone ObIiterates an
Oklahoma Town.
Relief NeCess Try as the Whole
Population is Without Shelter.
Twenty-Five Were Killed Outright and Nearly
Two Hundred Injured Night of Woe.

| DulldlnSS Hemain standing as result OF
the cyclone which struck this place day
before yesterday. The town is practi-
cally obiiterated. so far as residences 60
twenty-five persons were killed out
right or burned to death, and nearly 2OC
were seriously wounded. Probably &c
more will die. The entire population is
without shelter. and the property loss
will reach over $500OOO There are no
collins TO bury the dead.
The storm broke upon the CITY sud
denly Shortly before o'clock a mass
or dark clouds gathered in the South
west and whirled north. They soon
developed into funnel shaped mass
ana bore down upon the outskirts of the
town. AS the tornado touched the
ground the roar was deafening. The
| funnel split as Ii struck the southwest
corner OF Chandler, which is situated on
hill. anil one half went through the
town and the other went north Before
| escape was possible, the cyclone had
| swept through the town. Buildings
were crushed or lifted high into the air
and tossed in every direction. Chief
| Justice Dale of the Oklahoma supreme
court, was holding court in the court
| house. which was crowded He ran
with his wife tp a hollow, and the two
protected by boulder escaped unhurt
| A moment later the structure was
| twisted around and crashed into the
street a complete wreck. One of the
occupants was killed outright and a
| dozen others injured. Further down
Main street the Lincoln County bank
building was toppled over, and was soon
| enveloped in flames. Here, before aid
| could reach them, five unfortunates
were burned to death, while pinioned
| down by heavy timbers.
Still further down the street, three
children suffered like fate. Passing
| on to the residence district, the cyclone
| toppled over dwelling after dwelling,
| turned houses on their tops and made
| the streets unrecognizable. ?
A 2-days-old baby was carried four
blocks and not injured while the mother
was crushed in her bed. The trail the
| storm left was one of wreck and ruin.
| With the first realization Of their pre-
dicament over, the uninjured and able
bodied found themselves, from fright
| and confusion, well nigh helpless to rem
| der aid. Finally, when an effort to
send for aid was made, 1t was found
| that all communication with the out
side world had been cut Off, the tele-
| phone office being among the buildings
| destroyed. 1t was several hours be-
| fore communication with Guthrie was
established. The nature Of the catas-
trophe. together with an appeal for aid
| had been communicated to the neigh
boring city when the wires snapped and
| Chandler was again shut off. In the
meantime however, a train beari-o
physicians and others left for the scene
| The wire came up later, and appeals for
| aid met prompt response, and additional
| rescuing parties were sent out as soon
as the extent OF the damage became
! known.
The night in Chandler was one of in
describab,e terror. With many of its
inhabitants dead or dying, and the re-
niainder too badly injured or unable,
from fright or because Of the darkness,
to render assistance, no order prevailed.
rain pvui11;a, 1o-..,--, III torrents. The
injured in many cases vainly cried for
help and lay in the wrecks Of their homes
until daylight made it possible for them
to help themselves, or when aid from
surrounding towns arrived.
BY midnight some show of systematic
rescue had been perfected, and the dead
| and dying were being released from the
! ruins. Improvised hospitals were
! erected and the unfortunates were cared
| for as fast as possible.
At 1 o'clock 20 dead bodies had been
taken from the ruins, while dozens of
PERSONS, more or less seriously injured,
had been removed to places of safety.
But one of Chandler's physicians es-
capped unlnjured, and even after aid
from Guthrie arrived there was u scar
| city OF surgeons. Only two were able
to do anything. and one of these, DR..
Wolcott, with blood streaming from a
sightless eye. worked until he tainted
Daylight brought hundreds OF people
from surrounding towns to assist In
caring for the injured. Little progress
was made, however, and IL was not un-
I'll noon that an organized effort for
alleviating the suffering was made. The
four remaining buildings were turned
into hospitals and directed by Mayor
Kinney, the work proceeded as swiftly
as possible.
Queer sights greet the eye on all sides
Ten trees have house roof hanging or
each; clothing and household goods are
scattered I'm the streets. Dead horses
cows and other animals are to be seer
everywhere, while a pile of ruins has
n piano perched on top OF IL. Many o
the citizens wander about the streets
dazed at the calamity. and almost or
the verge of insanity at the loss o.
family and home. Two or three hav,
gone stark mad.
Ten thousand people fiocked into tn,
city yesterday. Many of them came e
render aid. but the majority were morbit
sightscers. A great quantity OF cloth
ing, bedding and provisions has beer
sent In. and the Guthrie club has raised
$500 in cash. The city has put to use al
its cash. about s7o0. for immediate aid
Hundreds of tents have been sent from
Fort Reno and Guthrie. and will provide
! temporary shelter for the unfortunatcs
All are homeless. however. and mor'
substantial aid must quickly follow
Food is scarce and the supply Of medi