The age-herald., 1901-06-27
WEST VIRGINIA FLOOD REPORTS
 ARE APPALLING Now Estimated That the Loss of Life Will Exceed One
 Hundred SLEEPING JAR WAS FLOODED
SLEEPING CAR WAS FLOODED
Passenges Had to Escape by Crawling Through the Windows-Property
 Loss May Reach $5,ooo,o
 Riots and Lootine Reported.

Bluefieid, W. Va, June 26.-Another destructive storm visited the flood. swept district tonight, and while no loss of life Is yet reported from thIs second visitation, yet the damage to property has been great. The work done by the large force of men repair. ing the damage of last Saturdays flood has been destroyed la many places. Details are hard to gather, for the com. municstion destroyed by Saturdays flood has not yet been re-estabIished.
 Williamson, W. Va, June 26.-There is no longer any doubt that the list of the dead, the result of the recent flood, will exceed one hundred. Parties reached here this afternoon from the upper end of the flooded district bringing the first euthen- tic information received from the scene of disaster. The party consisted of Judge E. s. Dolittle of Huntington, Judge Flour noy of Charleston and Elias Hatfield, deputy sheriff of Mingo County.
 These gentlemen left Vivian Sunday morning and their journey to this city has been perilous one. Judge Dolittle started to wade Laurel creek and came near being drowned. floating some dis tance before being rescued by two colored men.
 Judge Flournoy and MT Hatfield gave the same colored men s25 to carry them across the stream safely. Judge Dolittle said to the Associated Press correspond ent tonight that words corlid not describe the scenes of devastation between Vivian and Davy. It was tidal wave from a cloudburst and swept everything before it. In the track of it's course everything is stone. At Vivian the water came roaring down the mountain sides in monster waves, and people who attempted to flee to the hills for safety were washed back and carried away by the raging current of the Elkhorn. The section visited by the flood was thickly settled, but as the population consists chiefly of miners who were at work at the time, the large ma- jority of the dead are women and chill dren, and thrilling stories of rescue are told.
 Mother and Chlld's Escape.
 At Eckman a mother climbed a huge pillar of a railway bridge holding to her breast her only child Her home was washed away but the mother and child wer saved Fiften people are said to have been drowned at Eckman. At Keystone the loss of, life was great. Probably thir- ty persons perished there In one in- stance persons fled to an inland and climbed small trees. only to be swept away fifteen minutes later by the tide which was filled with debris of every kind Judge Doolittle was on the Nor folk and Western train No. at Vivian when the flood tide overlook it. He was in a sleeper and on awakening discovered water rushing through the center aisles and all was confusion. He climbed, as did many others, through windows and was rescued by people nearby on coke ovens by means of boards being placed to the windows. No passengers were drowned
 It took eleven hours to dig the debris away from the train after the flood tide had passed assenger train No. Il was also lost at Eckman, being completely carried away with boxcars, houses, etc
  loaded with merchandise, were washed away at that point.
 On Dry Fork the loss of life was great Bodies are scattered all along the stream many of which will never be identified. Seven saloons at Keystone were washed away, four lives being lost in one of them.
 Ruins from Ennis to Davy.
 Dr. Hatfields home at this point was not washed away, as formerly reported and his family is safe. At Brooke. the loss of property is also severe, but only three lives are said to have been lost there. The region from Ennis to Davy, forty-three miles. is completely in ruins Hundreds of mine mules can be seen in heaps intermingled with human bodies unknown amounts.
 Near Davy a horse was found lodged in a drift with a human body dangling to it, the mans foot having hung in the stirrup of the saddle. A report has just reached here that fourteen bodies are lodged in a drift at Hatfield with the hope of recovering them. Near Burke man saw his brother sinking in the flood and plunged into rescue him. Both were drowned.
 c. F. Cliqord. train dispatcher for the Norfolk and Western, walked from En- his to Davy, forty-three miles, and now has control of the telegraph lines at the latter point. He says on his Journey he saw five dead bodies at Eckman, seven at Keystone and fifteen scattered promis- cuously along the route. It is believed the loss of life along the little streams emptying into the Keystone has been great. These streams have not been thoroughly explored. It Is stated here tonight that eight large steel bridges were washed away on Elk Horn alone. It is not thought that trains will be run ming east of Wech for three or four weeks. It will take this long to build temporary trestles
 Five construction trains left here last night and will pick up every man on the way possible to assist in railway re- pairs.
 Mir Hatfield says that a temporary telegraph wire has been strung on stakes for a few miles above Welch and in many cases necks of beer bottles were used as insulators.
 Twenty barrels of whisky were caught
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