The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1903-06-19
DESTROYED BY CLOUDBURST.
lawful Fate Of The Town Of Heppner In
0regOn-Five Hundred Lives Lost and
Residence Portion Laid Waste

Five hundred people lost their lives
in a cloudburst that almost entirely
destroyed the town Of Heppner, Ore
= a; = o'clock Sunday night. Heppner
is the county seat of Morrow County,
and had about 1850 inhabitants. A
messenger who arrived at lone said
that wall of water twenty feet high
rushed down into the gulcb in which
Heppner is situated, carrying every.
Ming before it. The food came with
forrh suddenness that the inhabitants
be 70 unable to seek places of safety
End were carried down to death by.
the awful rush of water Almost the
entire residence portion of the town
was destroyed, but some of the bust
ness part, which is on higher ground,
escaped. Huge boulders, weighing
9 ton, we're carried down by the cur
rent, and many people were killed by
being dashed against the rocky bluff.
Early in the afternoon thunder
storm occurred, covering wide region
of country, and later heavy cain
storm set in, many of the small
streams overfowing their banks in
short time. Bridges we're swept
away like straws AS soou as possi
hle after the flood had subsidized the
work of relief was commenced by the
citizens Of the town. Dozens Of bod
les we're found in the creeks, and in
some places they were piled over one
another. Up to 2 O'Clock Monday
afternoon over two hundred bodies
had been recovered almost within tho
city limits. The buildings which
were not carried away were moved
from their foundations or toppled
over. Hundreds Of horses, cattle,
sheep and hogs that had gone into
the creek bottoms for water perished
News of tho calamity did not reach
the outside world until Tuesday, all
means of communication having
ceased. AS soon as possible news
WAS sent by conrier to the nearby
towns. The Oregon Railway and
Navigation Company started relief
train, with physicians and supplies,
from The Dalles shortly after noon
The citizens of Portland starte.l a
relief fund IA soon Rs the news of the
disaster spread over the city, and
within q few hours $4,000 was raised.
Supplies will be rushed to Heppner
AS soon rs they can be assembled.
Fifteen buildings in the town of
Lexington, nine miles below Heppner,
on Willow Creek, were washed away,
but with no loss of of life, the in
hehitanta having time to save them
selves from the surging torrent.
AT lone, seventeen miles away,
considerable damage was done to
buildings. although no loss of life is
reported from there.
CASUALTY LIST FoOTa UP 500
The Dalles, Ore, June lG.--A trle
phone message from lone staten that
the latest find in the ruins Of Hepp.
ner indicates that the loss uf life will
he much greater than at first sup
posed The casualty list will foot np
800 and many of the bodies wilt
never ba recovered The property
lnas in destruction Of buildings alone
will aggregate probably million
dollars. This is regarded as Il con
servstlve estimate. One hundred
and fifty of the hrst residences we're
swept away. The debris is piled
along the railroad track to the heis ht
Of freight cars The relief work il
progressing vt " satisfactory rate
Jaups krrnnn. the Oregon Railway
m ! Navigation Cumpnnv agent, met
his death at tn" telegraph key trying
to call Portland, to inform the ont
sid" wnrld of the impending calam
ity.
Ore Of the most thrilling adyen
lures WAS that Of Tom Shuler, wht
with his family WAS carried howr
stream in his house for milo and ,
half His wife and two children