Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1901-08-22
STORM AND FLOOD.
Gulf States are Swept by a Hur-
ricane.
"A Number of People are Drowned and
Great Damage to Property rs Re-
pOrted-Cities of New Orleans
and Mobile are Flooded.

Atlanta, Ga. Aug. 16.-The tropical
storm which has been raging along
the gulf coast for two days has com
pletely isolated the city of Mobile,
Ala, from the outside world. Con-
siderable damage has been done
along the water front in Mobile, but
whether there has been loss of life
or not is mere conjecture Nothing
had been heard from the country
south of Mobile up to the time the
last wire to Mobile failed.
At 1870 Thursday afternoon the
Western Union office in Mobile was
abandoned, the water at that time
being three feet deep in the operat-
ing room.
Two hours later communication
was had for few minutes with Mo-
bile. The press operator there had
made his way to the operating room
in boat. He took up his position,
on top of the switchboard, several
feet above the flooded office and de-
tachfng the press wire from its place.
in the board, sent this message:
"Am on top of the switch board
here with a lineman. The water is.
over three feet deep in this room and
it is still rising. The wind is blow.
ing at the rate of so miles an hour
and we look for worse things to-
night. The business district is de-
serted-'
Here the wire failed and nothing
more could be heard from him. al
though the most persistent efforts
were made.
The water at , p. m. was reported
as high as in the great food of 1893,
although at that time the wind was.
not as high From Mobile to Fort
Morgan is a distance of 30 miles. and
on both sides of the bay summer re-,
sorts and summer houses are locat-.
ed. These were, it is believed, in,
the direct path of the storm.
1t is feared there has been some
loss of life on the islands in Missis-.
sippi sound, Just outside of the bar.
below Fort Morgan.
These islands, which are inhabited
by French fishermen. rise only four
or five feet above the water under
ordinary stage and were the scene of
great loss of life in 1S93
According to advices received here,
the Louisville & Nashville railroad
has washouts near Chefmenteur.
Lake li"Incflue. Lake LOOKOUT ana
Rigelets Twenty miles of Louisville.
d Nashville track through the Ten.
sas swamps west of Mobile are re-.
ported under water.
New Orleans, Aug. 1G.-The storm
which has been sweeping the gulf
coast from Pensacola and moving
westward during the past two days
has prostrated telegraph and tele-
phone wires to such an extent that
news from the outlying sections is
hard to get. The greatest fears have
been entertained for the safety of
the people living at Port Eads. which
is the mouth of the Mississippi river.
and for the ships that started for sea
just before the storm began.
The wires to Port Eads have been
prostrated since Tuesday night, but,
the Picayune reached man who left
there at . o'clock Wednesday. He.
was at Buras. which is 90 miles down
the river and the farthest point with
which there is wire communication
at the present time. This man de-
scribes the storm which swept that
section as a regular tidal wave. sim.
liar to the one which resulted in such
awful loss of life in 1898. He saws.
of the river have moved up to the
Jump" which is Is miles from the
mouth of the river. The house of a
man named Golden, half mile above.
the quarantine station, was swept
away and the Is members of the fam
ly, including nine children, were.
drowned.
The tug boat Velasco went down to-
Pass L'Outre, which is the WESTERN
most point of the river. with two
oarges. When last seen she had her.
lecks awash and is believed to have,
zone down. If this boat and her
Darges have been lost 20 more people
nave been drowned. There are nu-
nerous reports of individual casual
les I'll along the river.
There has been much damage done
It Shell Beach, a settlement on Lake
3orgne. which is southeast of the
'ity and connects with Lake Pontch-
lrtrain. All the buildings there have:
)een swept away and there are re-
,orts of loss of Ire among the fisher
men. but the exact extent of this is
lot known.
In the city of New Orleans and
uburbs there has been some damage
1t Milneburg. one of the lake resorts,
he railroad pier head running out
nto the lake for a distance of 1000
ards has been destroyed and all
ight buildings demolished. The big
on shore withstood the
'ale. There was no loss of life. The
teamer Neptune, tied up at this
ierhead pounded herself to pieces
nd sank.
Only IA Failed.