The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-07-08
LIGHTNING'S WORK.
eve KILLED AND TWO INJURED
AT OFFERMAN.
TWO PARTIES MILES APART.
VET ONE ELECTRIC FLASH CAR
RIED DEATH TO BOTH.

r,vo Telephone Constructing Gangs
on the SatiIla River ParaIyzed by
Electric Bolts-Three White Men
and Two Negroes Killed, and
Three others Injured-The Two
cauos Were Five Miles Apart Yet
the Death stroke Seems to Have
Gonna simultaneously to BOth-The
Rodies Taken to Blackshear.
O4erman, Ca, July 7.-Three white
pOsn and two negroes killed, one white
man and one negro injured, is the re-
splt Of a severe thunder and lightning
storm here to-day
The men were all employed in the
construction department of the South
ern Bell Telephone and Telegraph
Company. and were stretching wire,
when struck by lightning:
The construction force were work
ing in two sections about five miles
mart. Three white men were killed
and one injured in one section, two
negroes killed and one injured in
the other.
one lightning bolt killed the five
and injured the two.
The while men killed were M. G.
Hawkins, F. B. Sluder and A. II. Ry-
mer. all of Alexander, N. c. The for
mer two are single men. The latter
has a wife and ten children in Alex
ander. Their bodies are being pre-
pared for shipment
More Detailed Account.
Waycross, Ca, July Five men
were killed and three others injured
by lightning while working on lines
of the Southern Bell Telephone Com
many this afternoon. Two gangs were
at work constructing new telephone
line between Savannah and Jackson
VILE. one was located at Little Satil-
la river, two miles from Screven, and
the other near Patterson, eighteen
miles east of Waycross. Two negroes
were killed, and two wounded of the
Patterson gang, and three white men
killed and one wounded from the gang
located at Little Satilla river.
Inc men ndu uull WI n III lAlC CoAAJ
afternoon on account of rain, and had
just commenced putting up wires again
when lightning struck the wires at 4:30
O'clock 1t is supposed that the same
shock killed the men on both gangs.
Those killed and injured at Patterson
We're:
TOM MITCHELL, colored, of Val
dosta
WILL GILBERT colored. r. w.
SMITH, white, wounded seriously in
back and internally. B. BOYKIN of
South Carolina, white badly shocked
will recover.
When the shock came Smith and
Boykn We're on top of a pole. Smith
fell to the ground, a distance of 20
feet Boykin, falling across the
wires was prevented from falling to
the ground. Four men were at foot
of the pole handling wires. The shock
killed two instantly and knocked other
two senseless. r. w. Smith lives z
miles from Rome Ga.
At Little Satilla river the killed
We're.
F. B, sLUDER, single, white, or
Ashville, N. C.
N. G. HAWKINS, single, white, of
Asheville.
a. ii, KY MER, white, has family In
Asheyille.
d, B. BRADFIELD of Atlanta, bad
~ shocked. will recover.
The men had just begun work, like
the Patterson gang, when the shock
came. From fifteen to twenty men
We're working in each gang. w. M.
Burke is foreman of the Patterson gang
and W. H. Miller foreman of the Lit
tIe Satiila gang. 1t is believed to have
peen mistake on the part of the fore
men In allowing the men to work so
soon after the thunderstorm.
The bodies of the dead were brought
10 Blackshear at 8 o'clock. to be pre-
pared for burial, the injured being
attended by Blackshear physicians.
Ihe telephone lines are nearly COM
pleled between Jacksonville and Sa-
Vannah. The negroes are greatly
frightened at the death of their COM
fades and there may be some trou-
lines.
Inquiry of the officials of the South
err Bell Company here developed no
dadltonal facts as to the tragedy at
OIerman. There is no representative
VI the construction department in Sa-
Nahnah and no report of the death of
me men, had been received by the
eohpany's officers here.
Hymer Leaves Ten Children.