The Savannah morning news., 1902-02-18
SNOW KING RULES
NEW YORK ALMOST BURIED UN.
DER HEAVY FALL.
THE FIERCEST SINCE 1888.
BROADWAY PILED HIGH WITH
SNOW HILLS.

Traffic Suspended, Except on Main
ThOrOughfares and Surface Cars
Put Out of Business-The HarbOr
ChOkcd with Ice and the War
ships Cut on From COmmunica-
tion with the ShOre-PhiIadelp
and Baltimore Report Similar
Conditions and Chesapeake Bay
Almost ImpassabIe.
New York, Feb. 17.-New York city
has borne the brunt of the fiercest
snowstorm that has struck this sec
tion of the country since the great
blizzard of 1888. Beginning soon aft
er midnight the storm increased rapidly
until by daybreak the whole city was
completely showed under. The rising
force of the gale piled the snow in
great drifts that for a time almost
suspended traffic. except in the main
thoroughfares, where the car tracks
were only kept open by the constant
use of snow ploughs and sweepers.
Communication between Manhattan
and BROOKLYN was subject to long de-
lay. The ferryboats with difficulty
made trips across the ice-choked rivers
and the work of tugboats, lighters and
shipping generally was almost at
standstill. So heavy was the snow
fall that the loading of vessels was
stopped, it being impossible to keep
the matches open.
Two steamers which arrived during
the night struggled as far as quaran-
tine where they came to anchor. Sew
erai steamers are supposed to be off
Sandy Hook waiting for the storm to
abate, before attempting to enter.
Tonight the local weather bureau
reports that the worst of the snowfall
which began to abate in the afternoon,
is probably over. The fall up to
p. m. was 9.3 inches.
This afternoon hurricane warnings
were hoiSted at Sandy Hook and New
York, and many vessels are detained
in port.
There was considerable delay in the
arrival of the mails. The local deliver
les of mail were hampered by the diff
Guilty of driving the wagons through
the snow-encumbered streets.
All mail service between this city
and points on Long Island was prac-
tically suspended.
The Scene ON broadway.
The congestion of the traffic on the
Manhattan street car lines was severe
during the morning when many of the
avenues were blocked with long lines
of stalled cars. On Broadway traffic
was confied to the narrow lanes be-
tween high snow hills and along these
cabs, trucks and cars crawled at snails'
pace. From other thoroughfares, truck
traffic disappeared almost entirely.
In the shopping district the block
ade was 50 complete that several of the
great department stores closed at
o'clock.
Four thousand men were set to work
to clear the streets of Manhattan early
in the afternoon. OF these, half We're
engaged in opening cross-walks, while
1000 men and 300 trucks were employed
to work all night clearing the main
streets.
On the elevated lines there was con-
siderable delay in the early hours, but
by the evening rush hours all trains
were running on time, although enor-
mously overcrowded, owing to the in
terruption on the surface lines.
The Brooklyn bridge was Kept clear
of snow from the time the storm began,
but both the elevated and trolley cars
were crowded to their utmost capacity
although many thousands of Brooklyn
ties preferred the perilous passage of
the ferries to participating in the crush
on the bridge.
Throughout Brooklyn the blockade
was even more general than in Mannat-
tan and little progress was made by
the street cleaning department beyond
opening cross walks on the principal
streets. During the day not over CO
per cen,. of the cars of the Brooklyn
Ia mid Transit were in ODQr3tiOn. and
thousands were compelled to make
their way on foot to the ferries.
staten Island Suffered.
Staten Islanders suffered more than
the residents of any of the boroughs
of Greater New York. The boats were
all much behind time and no effort
was made to keep schedule time, the
main trouble being due to the great
masses of ice packed in the slips at
St. George The island itself was COM
pletely showed under and the move
ment of trolleys and trains was
brought to a halt The conditions of
traffic were in every respect worse than
in the great blizzard of 1888.
Telegraph and telephone service in
New York experienced little interrupt
tion, for while the snow was heavy
there was no sleet to break the wires.
During the day only a few minor ac-
cidents to pedestrians resulted from
the storm.
The fleet of warships, awaiting the
arrival of Prince Henry off quarantine
was for hours cut off by floating ice
from communication with the shore.
Forty marines who put off to the ships
in boats from Staten Island, where
compelled to put back and return to
the navy yard.