Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-06-10
WATER ENTERING HOUSES.
A Foot Deep in Some Places and
Gradually Rising Along Levee
at St. Louis.
RIVER TRAFFIC NAY SOON Be HINDEREu

Break of Levee in Madison County
Wldens and Thousands of Acres Of
Farming Land Under Water-Res.
idents of Kansas City, Mo-, Busy
Cleaning Up.
St. Louis, June s.-The river Satur.
day morning reached a stage 347 feet,
a rise during the past "a hours of IL
feet, and continues rising at about the
same rate. All along the levee the wa.
ter is up to the stores and houses, in
some of them it being at least foot
and more deep on the first floors. So
far traffic in river has not been great
~ hindered, but when the water
reaches a stage of SO feet some of the
boats will probably refuse to receive
freight, as the approaches cannot be
used and the water will be too deep
for teams to drive through. At the
ferries the loading of teams is done
with great difficulty, the horses hav-
ing to wade in up to their shoulders.
Hundreds Driven from Home.
The break in the great Madison
county levee, which gave way Fri
day, has widened and Saturday morn
ing the water was rushing through a
gap 100 yards wide, covering 10000
acres of fertile farm land and three
villages - Oldenburg, Mitchell and
West Granite. About 500 persons
have been driven from their homes
by the flood. The roar Of the water
AS it pours through the break can
be heard mile and a half. The
break is only mile from the head
of this great bulwark, which was re-
garded as the principal barrier be-
tween the river and all the east side
cities, including East St. Louis.
Back of the Madison levee is an.
other mud embankment known local.
ly as "The Cross Levee," which is
three feet above the flooded wheat
fields. This levee runs from Mitchell
southwest, forming a junction with
the Madison levee one mile north of
the Merchants bridge.
But while the cross levee protects
Granite City it does not protect East
St. Louis from the current which has
set in with terrific force through
Venice, and it is within one foot of
the top of the several railroad EN-.
bankments which are now holding it |
back.
'"The Island" Under Water.
That part of St. Louis known as
''The Island" lying between Cahokia
creek and the Mississippi river, north
of the Eads bridge, is under water,
with the exception of 50 or more
houses around the Douglas school and
Baltimore & Ohio railroad embank-
ment, and the entire city is without |
gas. The marks on the Missouri ave-
nue. bridge for the food of 1892 show
that the water Saturday morning
stood but 10 inches below that mark.
While the real suffering is at pres
ent in the western part of the city,
even the residents of the high north
ern district felt the effects of the
rivers rise Saturday morning. Gel
lars all over town have water in them.
Water is still flowing into the city wa
ter pipes, but it is no longer filtered.
may be availa BILE.
There have been two drownings on
the East side, both boys. The first
was named James Linton. Jr, a a.
year-old messenger for the Terminal
association, whose body has been
washed away by the current. John
Clark, aged nine, was drowned at Mis-
souri, avenue. His body was recov-
cred.
Another Levee Breaks.
Word has reached here that Greer
1evee, 20 miles northwest of here.
which has been built around the ORTIZ
ern end of Creve Occur lake to keen
out the high water from the Missouri
river, broke late Thursday night, and
at least 20 people narrowly escaped
only by the prompt action
of William Simon, who manages the
boats on Creve Occur lake. The levee
had been guarded by farmers ever
since the rising of the water, but DUR
Ing the night it suddenly gave way, and
the waters rushed in torrents through
the lowlands. People climbed trees
ana sought various pldcoS OF refuge,
and above the rushing of the water
could be heard the screaming of wom-
en-. Simon ordered his employees to
take boats and row to the refugees,
and all were finally rescued by day
light. One woman was found stand
Ing up to her waist in the rising water,
holding her infant above her head, and
calling for assistance. The
damage to the Columbia bottoms is
estimated at 100000.
Special River Bulletin.
The Missouri river at Kansas City
continues to fall steadily, the gauge I
reading Saturday morning being 1873,
q fall of FL feet since Friday morn
ing. At St. Louis there has been q
rise of IL feet, and there were 34.7 |
feet of water on the gauge Saturday
morning. The interruption of the rise |
in the Mississippi north of the mouth !
Of the Missouri valley will probably
have but little effect on the St. Louis !
stage, and no reason at present exists !