Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1901-06-29
SEVERE ELECTRICAL STORM.
Heaviest Downpour Within such n
Short Space of Time Ever seen-Lfght-
ming Strikes In Many Places-Its
Queer Franks

| AFTERNOON
| For three quarters of an hour the
storm was at its heighth and during
| that time tightening shot up and
down the telephone wires and all
over the city, followed by loud claps
Of thunder that made the timid shrek
with terror.
Between 2:l5 and O'Clock the
greatest downpour ever experienced in
that space of time since local wealth
er bureau has been established in this
city fell within that TINA. 145 in
ches of rain decended upon the earth
Numerous houses in the lower sections
of this city were flooded and the
creeks rose as il by magic to raging
torrents. The storm soon subsidized,
however, and serious damage was
averted by the timely cessation of the
heavy down pour. Within an hour
after the storm came mp Old Sol
! peeping out from behind the dark
clouds caused more than one to heave
sigh of relief
In various places in the city and
county the Tightening played its
pranks. One OF the strangest freaks
of the storm was at the grain elevator
and warehouse of Henshaw & Lick
| lider, located near the Cumberland
Valley freight depot Here the
tightening struck twice and flashed
its disast rou- shock through the
building. The first. time it struck,
the cupalo on the building was shat
tered The tightening passed down
into the Office where Mr.. Licklider
was sitting and knocked the PEN with
which he was writing from his hand.
The ink was splattered all over the
desk and for moment Mr.. Licklider
sat at the desk dazed. his hand feeling
the effects of the shock. Part of
the woodwork on the cupalo was
| splintered and the slate on the roof
was shattered. The room nexS to the
Office was filled with smoke and a
/ peculiar sulphur-like odor. The second
time the tightening struck, the build
ing was again filled with smoke, but
no damage was done.
The house of Baltimore and Ohio
Baggage Agent Matthaei also fell q
prey to the tightening twice, at in
tervals about ten mi nutes apart. One
time the tightening struck the roof
near the chimney and made hole
yard square. The other time 1t
struck near the end of the wing Of the
house. The bolt which stuck near
| the chimney passed down to the
chimney into the second story of the
house and in Miss Matthaei's room it
| tore into pieces a picture which
was hanging over the stovepipe hole.
1t then passed down to the room below
and there continued its pranks.
| The family had left the room only
: a moment before the tightening struck
just in time to escape probable
shock. The tightening tore the
paper off the stovepipe hole and filled
the room full of SCOT and smoke Two
large holes were torn in the roof.
AT the home of Hon. Geo. f. Evans
the tightening struck large tree in
the yard. A limb was knocked down
over the telephone wires and the bolt
rassed in over the wires to the house.
The tightening arrester over the G.
& p phone was torn off the wall
and sent across the room at such a
swift rate that it was buried in he
door jam S, far that it could no be
pulled out.
At the exchange Office of the Win
chester Telephone Company nearly
all the fuses on the switch board were
burned ont. The tightening made all
sorts of noises and flashes in the room
and kept the clerks prancing about
the room for quite while.
Only few fuses were burned in
the @. g. p office.
Tightening struck the telephone
pole in front of the stote of ]. W. K.
Fisher, corner of King and College
streets ana gave an elctrlcal display
M and down the pole for few minu-
| ties.
Only a slight shower visited the
northern end of the county, but in
the southern end the storm was al
most as severe as in this city. No
damage is reported except to the
wheat, which was beaten down by
the heavy downpour of the rain.
Several telephone poles and q. V.
telegraph poles were knocked down.
A terrific storm prevailed along til
| Potomac Thursday afternoon. AT
| Orleans Gross Roads the Baltimore and
Ohio tracks were flooded and debris
was washed down the mountain, a
distance of two hundred yards. Some
of the bed for new track was washed.
Trains We're not delayed. ~he river