Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-04-04
rsrIMATES FROM 200 TO $780,
lyEE ABOVE THE CITY GIVES WAY
People Caught without warning-Housos
Tossed About Like Boxes-A Ter
ribIe Scene of Havoc.

this afternoon the levee Mt Shawnee
town, ILL.,, broke mile above the
town. and from all the Information that
can be obtained here. 1t is learned that
great part of the place has been de-
vsrcyed and perhaps largo number OF
citizens have been drowned.
shawneetown is twenty-five miles be-
low Evansville, on the Ohio river II
is situated In valley of extremely low
land, with hills skirting 1t in the rear.
and with ID twenty-five-foot levee run
ming from hill to hill.
The town is very much In the posi-
ton Of fortified city and when the
Ayee gave way mile above town,
under the pressure of very high
river, the water shot through Il
twenty-foot opening and struck the
place like a hurricane, sweeping every
thing before 1t.
Houses were turned and tossed about
like boxes. The people were not warned
and for that reason many were caught.
Those at home sought refuge In second
stories and on housetops. Those In the
str. cts were carried before the ava
lnnrhe Of water and probably major
4 10y were drowned.
Citizens came from the place by skins
TO o telephone several miles away and
naked for aid from Evansville. They
en.d that more than 200 people were
drowned and they had reason to be-
lieve that II would reach 500. or even
1000.
The water stand from twenty to
thirty feet all over the town. There
are, of course, no fires or lights In the
place, and total darkness envelops the
desolate city. Consequently it was i'm
possible for them to have anything like
definite information. The men imme-
dlately left the telephone, and no fur
cher communication has been had. No
Telegraph nor telephone wires are work.
ing and outside communication appears
impossible.
At 10 o'clock two steamboats, and a
couple of tugs started for Shawnee
town under full head of steam. and II
Is expected that some of them will
arrive there by o'clock in the morn,
ing. They carry large supplies of food
and blankets quickly collected by the
city officials.
Late news from Mount Carmi says
the disaster Is probably worse than at
first supposed and the loss of life will
be over 200. The survivors will be with
put food or fire and will suffer consider
ably. Relief will probably reach them
by daylight. Communication with the
Inflated place will not be had for sew
fral hours.
WORSE THAN THOUGHT AT FIRST
Chicago, April AT IL: 80 this morn
In thA IN a...
telephone company's office at Mount
Vernon. Ind, Informed the Associated
'ress that the estimate on the loss OF
lie at Shawneetown was at that hour
%. Mount Vernon Is but thirty miles
rom Shawneetown. and the informa-
ION on which the estimate Is based is
believed to be reliable. The operator
tated that the companys wires to the
trickeD city failed soon after o'clock
his afternoon.
At that hour IL was known that the
am was giving way. but It was not
hought that 1t would go to pieces
uickly enough to Gauge loss Of life By
O'Clock II was known In Mount Yer
on that many people had beer
rowned. the estimate being 100 at that
line. A relief boat bearing food, blank.
IS and surgeons was started down the
ivcr and was expected to reach Shaw
leetown before morning.
VI
decreased the estimates, stories coming
rom various points near the scene OF
nc Hood showing clearly that the dis.
ster was far worse than was at first
elieved.
People at Mount Vernon and sur.
ounding towns besleged the telegraph
hices. frantically asking for tidinp,
rom friends and relatives in the flood.
town, No attempt at an accurat,
~ OF the loss was possible, however
nd the crowds stood all night befor,
pc bulletin boards on which wer,
Pived.
oNG FEARED A CATASTROPHE
81. Louis. Mo-. April 3.-shawnee
1wn. his, has population OF nbou
ooo inhabitants. and IL situated on tn,
est bank of the Ohio river. Tn,
reefs are parallel with the river. N,
fincipal business street being but tw,
|ocks distant from the water, Th,
vel of the river IL about fifteen fee
poVe the city, and the levee bank 4
bout twenty feet thick.
Situated on this bank and level wifi,
e river is the Riverside hotel,a inrg
|ur-story building. built by Hrur,
pcher. The hotel is generally occu
I'd fully all the year round. boinI
\ only transient hostelry. but fam
fs also reside there. II IL feared IN
tel mas been washed away
When the river IL at It's normal stag
Is 1000 feet wide at this point, an,
He citizens have long feared a cetns
ophe such as occurred tonight. MS
emendous pressure is brought to bea
the levee during freshets. Severn
fars ago, during flood, the waite
WED over the levee and the street
ere under two feet OF water tn
wee WIS strengthened and built III
Rewards and the town has since bee,
Pnsidered in no danger.
FLOOD TEN MILES WIDE.
Chicago April "a special To tn
ecord from Cypress Junction. Ills
Us: Two hundred and fifty person
IRE drowned today by lnundatiol
Shawnectown. six miles from thi
ice. The levee broke at o'clock thl
ernoon and the Ohio river nowe
pr the town many feet deep.
- houses Nrc floating nbou
light and many persons are clingIn
the wreckage in the hope that res
rs will appear with boats to TAX
bn to places of safety.
n communication with the town
'off. Trains cannot reach there en-
phone and telegraph wires ar
m The first report that reache
was that the entire population