The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-07-02
DETAILS OF THE HAVOC WROUGHT
BY CLOUDBURST AND ELECTRICAL STORM

further down Third street, near the
/ residence OF Judge Powers
A few minutes after that Chester
/ Colborn, while watching the flood, &C
/ cideEtly stepped into a ditch. The
1 next instant tie current had lifted him
! off his feet, and landed him on his head
a few feet further down the current.
/ He escaped with a bad fright and a
good Wetting.
All this time the main portion Of the
/ flood was tearing down Logan avenue
1 to where Fourth street begins the
additional overflow sweeping across
the block on which the COlbOrn and
( Powers horses stand The magnitude
of the overflow from Logan avenue
can De realized when il is stated that.
svnen the flood was at its highest. the
( Powers residence. standing as II does
upon a terrace overlooking the city,
was surrounded by four feet Of water.
With "a roar il swept over the ter
race, carrying everything before 1t,
striking the sidewalk with a mighty
force. tearing the gutter 10 twice lis
natural size, and cutting crevices in
the street. Tie aftermath of the flood
/ in that block Is d flooded cellar for
Judge Powers to pump out. lawns
covered with mud and sand and shrubs
torn up by the roots.
Waters Spead Over Several Blocks.
4
sOuthweSteTly direction across lots,
over lawns, back yards and streets.
widening as II swept along until the in
undated district extended as far west
as . street and as far south as Brig
ham street.
When the main volume Of the flood
reached Fourth street, the continuation
OF Logan avenue IL rushed with re-
neWed force, as tie topography of the
country from there west and south -
down hill with d sharp declivity- That
accounts for the speedy reCeding Of the
waters around the Powers and Col
born houses
A block below the residence Of Judge
Powers the declivity to the west be
comes more gradual but a little sharper
to the south and southwest. That took
the torrent in botE directions, spread
ing il over a wider territory. and
breaking its damaging force, which was
experienced with thrilling moments on
the top of the MILL
From Third and w streets. south
to Brigham street, and west TO Q
street. almost every resident in the
district. had the same tale to relate ct
10 o'clock. Lawns are covered with
mud. sand and debris, fences were
either partially wrecked or greatly
weakened; SHRUBS were torn up by the
roots. as were also small trees wooden
sidewalks, in sections six and ten feet
long are missing. and cutters cut TO
twice their natural size
Tie streets also show the effects of
the onTuShing waters. Where the cur
rent was the Swiftest great Tuts were
cut some being 200 and 800 feet long.
Where the current swept around a
corner, the cutters were either filed
with sand and mud or scO0ped out so
deep and wide as 10 be two or three
times their natural size
Street Car Tracks Covered.
The street car tracks in the inundated
district were covered With mud and
debris. making it almost impossible for
the cars 10 hold the rails the first time
they passed over the flooded district
Toward the upper end Of Brigham
street. where the water rushed down
from Fourth street with c0nsidera bic
force, sand and mud were banked up in
some places two and three feet high.
on the streets used by the street cars.
where the waters flowed along or across
the tracks, ties were exposed, the tor
rent carrying away the dirt and sand
used as ballast
The effects Of the flood on Brigham
street were 10 be seen as far west as
T and q streets From those streets
10 J and X. the damage was mostly in
the center Of the streets. where the sur
AtifE httS u lSLitu away exposing the
rocks and small bOulders
Where the water rushed down the
higher alphabetical streets. IT the in
tersection Of Brigham street. the cur
rent carried mud and sand from the
inundated district into the center of
tho latter thOroughfore.
Features OF the Deluge.
There were three peculiar features
OF the food. In the first case there was
little OF no rain early in the evening
on the east bench. but II could be seen
that the fan OF water in the mountains
was heavy.
The flood was followed by a heavy
rain, which lasted about two hours
Then the wind began to blow. coming
from the Wasatch range. It is esff-
mated that at one time II blew forty
miles an hour on the bench The velo-
city was such az TO tear limbs from
trees and scatter them over the ground
which had been left with coating Of
(cctinued on Page 81