Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-06-24
DEATH DEALING FLOOD
The Number Of Lives Lost in
West Virginia Flood Still
Conjectural.
Estimates Placed All the Way
From 200 to l.0OO-.Re.
ports Meager.
Communication With the strick.
en- by Rail or Wire Is
Still Cut Off.

&NeW 1OTk, June G4.-MayOr la0Q, OIL
Bluefeld. w. Va. wires as follows:
ut is estimated that 200 lives were
lost in the Elkhorn flood. The damage
TO the Norfolk & Western railroad is es-
timated at half million dollars and to
coal companies and individuals two
millions of dollars. There is no commu-
nication with any point further down
the valley than Elkhorn. 1 am unable
to tell whether ouside assistance will be
reeded until further information comes
in."
Roanoke, Va, June PA passenger
train from the west over the Norfork
and Western railroad which was due
here at 11:05 p. m. did not reach Roam
oke until $50 this morning. When the
train came in there We're many people
at the station who had waited anxiously
all night for the belated news carrier
from the devastated coal fields of West
Virginia. Among those who came in on
&he train who had been in the storm
was prominent business man of Roam
oke. several railroad men and women
and two children. They came direct
from Vivian, and they We're compelled
to walk distance of eleven miles to
the town of Ennis. where they were en-
abted to get a train These passengers
declare the number of deaths has been
exaggerated and In their opinions feel
confident that not more than a hundred
people lost their lives tho they can not
say With any certainty as to the num-
ber. The mountain district lying back
from the railroads probably suffered
heavily and the exact loss of life VIII
not be known for several days. A rail-
road man from Vivian told the Associ-
ated Press correspondent that the rain
started last Friday night and continued
for some time in moderation, but shortly
after midnight the heavens seemed to
open and poured forth great volumes
OF water. When the cloud-burst was
over at Vivian there was 4 passenger
train standing In the railroad yards
with about forty passengers of whom
three were women, in the cars. The
: water rose rapidly and was soon over
], the trucks of the cars. Houses and
/ cars were being washed about before
the eyes Of frightened passengers.
Ropes We're thrown to the cars and
I the mail passengers caught them and
waded thru the water, which waa now
waist deep, to places of safety around
the coke ovens on the adjoining hill
Ihe ladies' were too frightened to get
into the water and We're placed on tn.
Srender of the engine where they were
cafe. Other portions Of the railroad
h.yards We're washed out and a hundred
|. oox cars We're wrecked The house in
i-sWh1ch the section master lived was
. a 1nf fvt a
2 master rode on driftwood for four miles
and lodged In q tree from which he was
syascued.
/. A colored section hand. who was a..
the section masters when the food of
waters struck the building. was
drowned. The rain ceased falling nj Q
Saturday morning. There has been no
z rain since and the streams are gradually.
falling. big furniture store and a
large clothing house We're washed away
at vivian. also about a dozen small
dwellings situated In the lower portion
OF the village. Two dead bodies, both
/ colored men, were seen at Eckman and
three colored and one white at Empire.
Two aron bridges were washed away at
/ Vivian and another at Northfork juno
I ton. and three persons are reported
drowned near the latter place. All the
+ bridges and trestle work have besn
washed away on the Simmons river
branchsof the Norfolk & Western All
+ telegraph lines are down and tracks
/! badly washed out on this division Peo-
3 pie who came from have not come thru
the town OF Kelstone, but only around
i It. They state the damage done there
| te nothing like as great as at first re
! ported. They think not more than d
dozen houses We're washed away They
can not say how many. If any, lives
were lost at Keystone. OF ten miles of
railroad between the towns of Vivian
and keystone 1t Is stated there Is not a
hundred yards of track in one place.
The damage done all over the coal fields
is immense. but every one seems to
have been too excited and anxious to
away to take time to inquire into the
affairs OF their neighbors. 1t is GER
tain. however, that much valuable ma
chinery has been washed away. Many
wrecked cars along the Elkhorn Valley
have been washed down the river. East
of Ennis the train had little trouble in
getting thru u Blueflelds. Two bridges
have gone down between Vivian and
Welch. AT Shawnee the Shawnee Coal
Company lost all their mine mules. A
z report from heystoAe HAS is tHat MOD
OF negroes there refuse to work for 50 a
day. but are loafing around watching a
chance to steal from the debris. Anoth-
er report says the number of dead there
ia seventeen, and ten have been buried.
The newspaper men have gone to the
coal fields to get reliable information and
II Is expected something definite will be
known within the next twenty-four
hours
Governor White Alarmed.
Huntington. w. Va. June 24.-Gov-
ernor White is here making arrange
ments to get tents and provisions for
the stricken district along the Norfolk
& Western. He says he fears the death
list will exceed thousand
Reports are Conflicting.
Richmond, June 24.-Conflictine re.