The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1903-06-04
Loss Will Reach Millions.

suburb. has suffered losses estimated
at $1,000 Other losses which can
not now be estimated, will increase
the total very materially.
Armourdale, with a. population OF
5000 people is deserted, and its site
marked only by the tops of buildings
and a number of fires. Seven fires.
believed to be chiefly box cars burn
ing. could be seen from the bluffs last
night There is some danger that the
flames will spread to the partially
submerged buildings, adding greatly
TO the already heavy loss. The fire
started by the intrusion of the water
into lime house. All bridges over
the Kaw river are down and the only
communication with Armourdale is by
boat.
Trains Are All Tied Up.
Kansas City is without a water
supply, the flood having disabled the
pumping station, and the utmost care
is being taken that no fires break out,
Even a small fire it is feared would
start a confiagration. Only one street
car line in the city Is running. The
city is bloekaded with trains unable to
get out. Not train has gone out eX.
cept to the east, and it is said there is
little prospect of an Improvement in
the situation for several days.
Hundreds of rescues, some of them
made by the narrowest of margins, oc-,
Cured.
Two-thirds of Argentine, railway
and manufacturing town on the south
bank of the Kansas river six miles
from here is inundated by II to %
feet of water and probably 100000
damage has been done.
Homeless and Destitute.
Probably 5000 of the $500 inhab-
itants are homeless and 5000 are des-
titute. Three bridges have been swept
away, all the railway tracks and fac
tories are under water and business is
suspended. ..
The current of the river has left the
old channel and has moved south, TAX
ing all the buildings in its path. The
Santa Fe track is under water all the
way to Holiday, eight miles from Ar
gentine up the Kansas river valley.
The Turner bridge, three miles above
Argentine, went out at 1890 o'clock
yesterday morning. Its wreckage
lodged against the county bridge at
Argentine, which succumbed at noon.
The Belt Line steel railroad bridge,
Just below the county bridge, fell i'm
mediately afterward. Then in sue
cession the Twenty-fourth street
bridge and the county bridge at Fifth
street
Were Carried Away.
The railroad bridge was vafIed at
SIS 900 and the other four at SIS, 900
each. making the bridge loss sl75, 900.
Five hundred frame dwellings are I'M
der water, and with further rise
many will be swept away.
The river is fun of wreckage and
crowds of people lined the banks yes
terday, watching the procession Of
houses, cars, trees and other debris
that floated down.
The loss of the bridges and the sus.
| phone service have almost Isolated
| Argentine. There would have been a
famine yesterday but for the discovery
| of two refrigerator car loads Of meat
in the railroad yards and the gen.
crosby of a contractors who sent a
Wagon load of Bread
from Kansas City for free distribution.
| The people in the flooded district had
/ ample warning, but, clinging to their
| houses, hoping for fall of the water,
until they could escape only by boat
/ or raft.
Late yesterday afternoon the walls
! of a building at the foot Of Fifth
/ street fell with q crash. 1t isimpossi-
BILE to tell what building 1t was.
At o'closk last night seven fires
we're burning in the railroad yards, al
of them having originated f'om lime
| stored in freight cars coming in con-
! tact with the water.
There are rumors that the total
number of deaths in the wholesale
! district of the city during the latter
| part of the day will reach as high as
fifty, but there is no direct Evidence OF
| this and no possible way of aetermln.
ing the facts at present.
! A message from Kansas City, Kan,
| by way Of Leavenworth, at 2 o'clock
this morning says that twenty seven
men were on the Union Pacific bridge.
which spanned the Kansas riEer, when
II went down. and all of the men were
! drowned.
Thousands Of Acres Flooded.
Lincoln, Neb., June 2--FloOd waters
in some of the swollen streams be-
gan receding yesterday, bul the con-
| ditions remain practically as Dad as
before. Salt creek at Lincoll has gone
down two feet, but near Wlverly and
| Ashland II overlooked thousands OF
acres. Help was asked to rescue
! farmers imprisoned by thewaters.