The Savannah morning news., 1902-03-31
PANIC AT PITTSBURG
ROOF CRUsHEs IN ON EASTER CON-
IRRIGATION.
FIERCE WORK OF STORM.
MANY INJURED AND SEVERAL MAY
DIE.

Furnaces Greatly Damaged-Pres-
byterian Congregation Had Thrill
ing Experience and Many Were
Badly Hurt-Much Damage Feared
in Adjoining Towns.
Pittsburg, March 30.-One of the
fiercest windstorms ever known in this
section, struck the city just before noon
to-day and did almost incalculable
damage to property, and injured many
people, some of whom may die from
the effects of their wounds. Scores
of houses were unroofed, many trees
were blown down. mill stacks toppled
over, and telegraph and telephone
wires generally disabled. The most
serious accident reported up to 8
o'clock tonight was the unroofing of
the Knoxville Presbyterian Church in
Knoxville. The church at the time
was filled with an Easter congrega-
ton numbering about 600 per-
sons. While the minister was
ir, the midst of his sermon strong
gust of wind blew the large chimney
over and lifted a portion of the roof
of the building. The bricks from the
chimney crashed through the roof and
carried a huge piece of the ceiling,
measuring about 40 by 20 feet, down
upon the~worshipers in the pews. An
indescribable panic ensued and fran
tic rush was made for the doors and
windows. The excitement was soon
quieted down and the work of rescue
by the wreckage and more or less in
jured. OF this number five may not.
recover.
The more seriously injured are:
DR.. r. J. Phillips, aged 40, conclusion
of brain, may die; Curtis Ray Nc
Knight, 4 years old, internal injuries,
both legs crushed, probably
fatal; Clarence McNulty, aged
II, internal injuries, badly
fracture at base of brain, serious;
David Smith, aged 80, arm broken head
cut and badly battered, serious; Joseph
Adams, 81, badly crushed; Albert
Schmidt, aged IA, both arms broken
and head cut; John Meyer, aged IL,
head and face cut; Thomas Mehrl3n.
aged Is, arms and head cut; Evan
Jones, aged %, serious scalp would;
Mrs. Rachel Schultz, aged IS, arms
broken.
Nne of the other injured are seri-
ously hurt.
In none of the other accidents report
ed throughout the city were there any
serious injury to persons; though many
narrow escapes are recorded. The tow
boat Belle MCGOWAN was blown over
in the Ohio river, opposite Mill Run,
and completely wrecked. Her crew
narrowly escaped drowning, but all
were finally rescued by harbor boats.
The corrugated iron roof of the union
bridge at the Point was lifted from its
fastenings by the wind, and portions
of it carried a distance of a mile. The
Whittier school house on Mount Wash
ington was unroofed and it's walls
badly twisted. Jones & Laughlins had
fourteen of their furnace stacks blown
down, necessitating the shutdown of
a portion of their plant for weeks.
Reports from nearby towns are slow
coming in, probably on account of the
crippled conditions Of the wires. 1t is
feared that much damage has been
done in those places.
Many WOrshippers Injured.
AS Rev. J. w. English, pastor of
the Robinson Run U. P. Church near
Mcdonald, was raising his arms to
pronounce the benediction, lightning
struck the church spire and it toppled |
upon the roof, crushing it and injur-
ing a number of worshippers, two of |
whom will die.
The injured: Robert Patterson, aged |
10. skull fractured, will die; Leon |
Averill, II, skull fractured, will die; |
Mrs. John Patterson, mother of Rob
ert, severely bruised about body: Mrs. |
Mary Patterson, arm broken and bad
ly bruised; Miss Mary G.. Wallace,
badly bruised; Mrs. Averill, mother of
Leon, head and arms cut and bruised.
The spire and portions of the roof of |
the U. F.. Church at Mcdonald were
torn off, and the building considerably |
damaged, but none was injured.
The Noblestown Presbyterian Church |
was also unroofed, but the congrega-
ton escaped injury.
The Forest Oil Company had between |
200 and 300 derricks blown down in it's |
Mcdonald region and considerable |
damage was sustained by its pipe sys-
tom.
The offices of the Monongahela con-
Meeting railroad, on Second avenue, |
this city, were destroyed by fire dur
ing the afternoon because no alarm |
could be sent in either by telephone |
or telegraph.
The Armstrong Cork Company's |
plant on Liberty avenue, between |
L
was unroofed, and much damage done |
to machinery and stock.
Reports from the different railroads
to-night show that all suffered more or
less from broken telegraph poles and |
service. All, however, were in |
good shape and trains running by
o'clock.
The baseball park in Allegheny lost |
one of its fences and portion of the
grandstand roof.
More than $500 lights of glass in the
Phipps Conservatory in Schenly Park
were broken and much of the gorgeous
Easter flower display ruined.
The Montana apartment house at
Penn avenue and Fairmont street, East
End. and the Idaho building, which
adioins it, were partially destroyed.
The damage in the Monongahela and
Turtle Creek valleys will reach thous-
ands of dollars, but no specially big
individual loss is reported.
Almost the entire East End district
of this city is in darkness tonight,
the electric lighting system having
been put out of commission by the
storm. The down town portions were
early in the afternoon.
The storm which came upon the city
very suddenly came up through the
Ohio valley and passed on eastward.
IT lasted only about thirty minutes,
only five minutes of which was the
velocity unusually high. In that five
minutes practically @ Of the damage
done was accomplished.