Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1901-12-17
DEATH AND DISASTER
FROM ICE KINGS REIGN
Unprecedented Weather Con-
ditions For the Season.
GREAT DAMAGE AT PITTsBURe

GREAT DAMAGE AT PITTsRURC
Factories and Mills Forced to Giles,
Down-Workmen ToiIed All Nigh
In Zero Blasts to Save Coal 5arges-
Cellars of Houses Submerged.
Pittsburg, Dec. 16.-The crest of tn,
food and the lowest point reached this
winter by the mercury were both reg
istered at the same time, a. m, wheI
the Smithfeld street bridge mark.
showed 25 feet 8 incnes or water il
the Monongahela river and the gov
ernment thermometer indicated de
grees above zero.
The rivers are now falling here and
at the headwaters and the tempera
ture is steadily rising.
A flood and cold wave at the same
time is almost unprecedented and only
the sudden drop in the temperature
averted one of the greatest floods il
X
A Fearful Might.
AS it was, the lower parts of Point
Distant and DuQuesne and the low
lands along the Monongahela river
south side, were submerged In ALLIE.
gheny the river front was entirely
under water, including the Pittsburg
and Western railroad, Lacrock, Rob.
inson, Hope. Balkan. Walnut, Cherry,
Madison and River avenues. The eel.
lars in many houses were flooded and
people were compelled to move For
the river men and dwellers along the
river banks OF Pittsburg and Alleghe.
ny 1t was the most fearful night expe,
rienced in many years. Similar con-
ditions have been practically unknown
to this generation.
Hundreds of men toiled all night
with the gigantic coal tows tied up
to the landings on both sides of all
three rivers in the face of bitter cold
wind. Drenched at times with the
splashes of foam. their clothes frozen
on them Immediately, their suffering
Pittsburg was there such a flood on
such a night The rains and snow
of the past three days caused the up.
per tributaries of the local rivers to
swell and the result was a rise al.
most unknown at this season of the
year. Warnings were sent out from
the weather bureau that a flood stage
was possible and even probable, but
the suddenness with which the cold
air descended on Saturday night, in.
fiuenced the minds of the men who
were guarding the big coal fleets and
the rise came almost as a complete
surprise to them Usually cold snap
takes all the life and danger out of a
flood 1t failed to do 50 yesterday,
and as a result the freshet will cost
hundreds of thousands of dollars that
might have been saved.
Damage Reaches Thousands.
The damage to goods in the wharves
and warehouses, stores and private
houses in the two cities will never be
known. It will probably reach $780,
600. In addition to this many mills
and factories along both rivers were
forced TO close down temporarily and
thousands of men and women will be
out of work from one to three days
and much damage done to machinery
and finished stock. AT all points along
the rivers reports of damage from
the high water have been received.
For a distance of half a mile along the
river at Brinton, the cellars of houses
were completely flied with water last
night, and in some instances covered
floors of the buildings. The water
stood 215 feet deep in the pits of the
American Steel and Wire company's
plant at BIaddock and the floors were
partly inundated. The plant of the
Monongahela Light and Power com
pany. at Rankin. were also flooded.
At McKee's rocks IN all the cellars
west of CHARTERS avenue the water
stood feet deep. In Esplen many
cellars were flooded. About 600 feet
of the newly built westbound track
of the Pittsburg and Lake Erie track
went down. An army of Italians was
damage The tracks of the Southern
Traction company were covered with
water, but the cars were not prevent
ed from running.
Herr island was partly submerged,
but IL was not necessary to remove
the cattle from the stock yards. At
Sharpshurg cellars were flooded and
hn
first floors. AS a result of the food
several plants along Penn avenue and
in the west end are closed today,
throwing thousands of employees out
of work. Among the more important
of these are the United States Steel
plant, Thirty-third street; Carbon
steel plant, Thirty-second street; Bal.
ley, Brown pudding works, Tenth
street; American Steel and Wire plant,
Twenty-seventh street; Diamond steel
plant and Zugs Sable iron works, Thir.
teenth street. Between Twenty-ninth
and Thirty-third streets all the eel.
lars of the houses are flooded, in most
instances the water rising TO the
height of feet.
In the west end several departments
of the Singer Nimick plant of the Cru.
chile Steel company were closed and
Painters No. 9 cotton tie mills of the
American Steel Hoop company were
idle.
Heaviest Freshet In Years.
Bordentown, N. j., Dec. 1e.-The
heaviest freshet in many years is now