The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-07-13
6speclal to rne Herald.l

Manti, July 12.-The most disastrous
food ever known in Sanpete county
visited Manti is5t night, and today the
city presents a scene that is difficult to
describe. The flood was caused by q
cloudburst in Manti canyon.
While no fatalities occurred, the
damage to public and private property
is very great. All yesterday afternoon
heavy clouds hung over the mountains
east OF the city, but no alarm was felt
until about Gas in the evening, when
Some men came riding down from the
canyon, shouting that a flood was COM
ing Even then some of the people
Were loath to believe the report. After
the alarm was given there was no time
10 tear up bridges or crossings before
the flood came, carrying with ii i'm
mense quantities of debris of all kinds.
Sheriff Jensen says he stood on the
bridge just east of the Madsen house
when the flood came. The first intima-
ton he had of the disaster was when
he saw a wall of muddy water about
eight or ten feet high coming down the
creek, carrying with it immense guam
titles of logs, StumpS and cobble rocks.
For a time himself and others sue
ceeded, by the use of poles, in keeping
the logs pushed under the bridge so
finally a large stick lodged crossways
above the bridge and in less time than
takes to tell ii, a dam was formed and
the principal part of the stream was
turned over against the Madsen hotel
building, in which was also the post
office. The cellar of the building was
quickly filed with mud and rubbish
From here a part of the stream crossed
the street and filled the basement of
the M2nu Coop. and the remainder
turned down Main street and threat
ened to ruin the whole business part OF
town. It kept in the street, however,
and for four blocks north of the bank
corner, Main street was a regular river,
the water being about two feet deep
and carrying with it cords of drift
wood, some of it being logs thirty or
forty feet long. Across Main street the
plank flume was bridged over the full
width of the street. The force of the
food raised this flume two feet, COM
pletely blocking travel.
Caught By Rushing Water.
There is another branch of the creek
in the south part of town, which was
also doing its share of the damage
Eye witnesses state that the wall of
water in this creek was twenty or
thirty feet high. The first dam occurred
near what is known as the Divider a
place up near the mouth of the canyon
where the water is usually divided into
the two creeks. The flood tore down
through the south creek, the debris
forming dams at every bridge and
making rivers of mud out of the street
The dams would hold for a moment
and then would go out, only to form in
a new place
To the west of the city, in what is |
known as the middle field. a great deal |
of damage is done the growing crops |
of hay and grain. The entire length of |
the creek through the city is choked |
with sand, boulders and driftwood. For |
d great deal Of the distance there is no |
whatever, only the line of de- /
bris showing where the channel was
Ex-County Surveyor John II. Sou !
gard went all along the creeks find |
streets which had been flooded today, |
and made a careful estimate of the |
damage He informs your correspond |
ent that the damage to property, public !
and private, Will reach SIS, 900. Other /
citizens place the damage all the way
from $4,000 to 600.
Among the individual losers, ]. H. |
Masen and L. +. Becker sustained the |
greatest loss. Their building, the Mad
sen hotel and postoffice, will be total
loss. Already the building is beginning
win be a total wreck.
Superintendent Tenant of the Coop
could not give an estimate of his loss.
The basement is full of water, and until
that is gotten out he could not tell any
thing about it,
The basement which Bruce Brown
to cover with a new saloon |
building is filed with mud and water
The rear of Christensen's saloon
is raised several inches, and
Paris office, which is located in one
corner OF the tithing yard, was raised
IN the flood and turned half around
All through the town in the path of
he flood, gardens and orchards are
covered with drift. The channels of
he creek, which extends diagonally
through the city from southeast to
northwest, had been thoroughly cleaned
vat this summer and for the greater
,art of the way We're planked on both
ides. 1t has cost the city of Manti
&c. 900 to get them in the condition they
we're in before the flood came, and now
he greater part of the work will have I
o be done over again. Several hundred
men and boys are at work today, clear ,
ng away the detSis. ,
Everything has been taken out of
he Afadsen hotel building, and the
,ostoffice has been located in his resi- ,
enee on Main street by Postmaster /
Iadsen. {