The record-union., 1899-04-29
Half of the Buildings at the Town
of KirksyiIIe in Ruins.
Nearly Fifty Bodies Already Recovered
From the Ruins, and Seventy Injured,
Many Of Whom Are Not Ex-
pected to Recover.

result of the tornado that swept
through the eastern portion of this city
yesterday evening, demolishing half of
the residences and other buildings, two
hundred families are homeless, and
nearly fifty dead bodies and sew
enty injured persons have been recov-
cred from the ruins. More than a
dozen of the injured will die. Although
rescuers have been searching the ruins
ever since the storm spent its fury,
many are still missing, and it is
thought a considerable number of the
unfortunates were consumed in the
flames that broke out soon after the
storm had ceased.
Hundreds of persons visited the
stricken district to-day, and a large
number of sightseers came from neigh
boring towns. The special officers
would not allow any one without au-
thority to go through the ruined dis
tricts. Kirksville streets have been huh
deep in mud ever since the first spring
shower, and the rain that followed the
tornado has made them impossible for
wagons. This state of affairs binders
the work of gathering the dead, and
makes the compilation of a great list
of victims impossible for the time be-
ing. All business has been suspended,
and the only stores open for business
are those dealing in drugs.
The scenes of the rescuers were hor-
rifying. An aged man and his wife had
evidently been eating their evening
meal when the cyclone struck and car
ried away their home. They had clasp
ed each other in their arms, and were
found dead on the ground some dis
lance away from where their home
had been. No trace of their house
was to be found.
Several of the dead were found in
spots which would have been the CEN
ter of the house had the. building not
been blown to splinters. This was the
case with Mrs. Panschoot, who suffered
most terrible death. Her headless
body, with its arms clasring her life
less babe, was discovered on the floor
of the house which was left as a raised
platform in an open field. The head
was as nicely severed as if it had been
done with knife and was about TWEEN
ty feet away. Two children had been
lying in cot in one of the destroyed
homes. The house was carried away,
but the floor of the first story and the
foundation We're left. the wind lifting
the house from the sills and tumbling it
a long distance. The cot on which the
little ones lay was lifted up with them
on 1t and carried fully block and a
half and set down on the ground.
Neither of the children were hurt
Along the railroad track. between the
1epot and Kelioggs crossing, a distance
of half a mile, was a mass of Debris.
The wrecks of many homes were scat
tered along there, and the trees were
filled with bedclothing and other house
hold goods.
Mayor Noonan, assisted by a number
of citizens, opened an intelligence bu-
reau at noon. Messengers were sent
through the stricken district IN search
of persons who We're known to have re-
sided in that section of town Every
citizen made it his duty TO report at
the bureau of information all cases of
death. injury and of persons missing.
In this way some little degree of order
was brought out of chaos.
AT O'Clock 1t. was said at headquar-
tiers that the injured so far numbered
seventy -four, with about a dozen cases
Which are sure to result fatally. The
list is not complete, however
There are two undertakes in Kinks
vile, and together they had all they
could do taking care of the dead
A meeting of citizens, at which the
Mayor presided, was held this afternoon
at the opera-house Committees were
appointed to systematic the work OF
clearing away the debris and finding
shelter for the homeless ones and
raising funds for their temporary care.
There's are at least 900 homeless peo-
pie in Kirksville t,-night.
The work of rescue continues b,.t It
may be days before the total rumber
of victims is known As far as known
the names OF the dead and injured are
as follows
Death list Theodore Brigham, Mrs.
Henry Ellington, A. J. Glasee and wife,
Mrs w. w. Green. Miss Bessie Green
Miss Lena Brown, DIR. W. B. Howells,
three children of Henry Lowe. Mrs
John Mahaffey, ST., Mrs. Blue Panchott
and baby, Seth Feather, Samuel