The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-05-12

Vernon, Tex, May 1.-THE first train
from Snyder since the tornado struck
| that town last night arrived here at 4
| o'clock this afternoon. Passengers of this
train gave a correspondent of the As
sociated Press who this morning left
| Fort Worth, Tex, for Snyder, a story
of fearful loss of life and property de-
| struction.
| Snyder is about mile square. The tor
nado struck the town just little west Of
the southwest corner of the township. Its
| pathway was about half mile wide, and
| in this strip there is not vestige of
| anything left, and in places the ground
is literally ploughed up. TO the west Of
| the pathway, everything is devastated
! with the exception of one o. two stone
stores. Tie course of the tornado was
| due northeast.
| Snyder is crossed by two tracks of the
| Frisco system, one traverses the town
| just a little north of its center, and
| runs east and west The other runs north
| and south, about half way between the
| center of the town and the eastern edge.
Not thing remains north and west of
| the junction of these tracks, except the
depot building and water tank, both
| twisted.
| The tornado struck tie town at 7:4O
| p. NJ. Just preceding it there was heavy
rainstorm, accompanied by vivid flashes
| of lightning and deafening thunder. Near
| ly all of the homes in Snyder had storm
| cellars, and during this heavy down.
pour many sought shelter in these eel
| lars.
| Left Their Refuge.
| Then there was a let-up of perhaps
| ten minutes. during which time many
thinking that the storm had broken, left
| their places of refuge and returned to
their houses. Then, with a deafening
rumbling noise, the funnel-shaped cloud
| dipped to the earth, apparently two miles
from the town, and with appalling veloc-
| ity crashed through the town. Many
| were caught between their houses and
| the storm cellars and killed outright.
| Others remained in their houses and
perished when the houses were demol-
| ished.
| The first intimation tie outside world
| had of the cyclone was at 7;4O o'clock
when the long distance operator at Ho-
bart heard the long distance operator
| in the Snyder exchange scream. The
| cause of this scream was the destruc-
| tion of the Snyder telephone building,
which was a lcng narrow wood building,
and which was split half in two by the
| wind. the break occurring where the
switchboard was fastened to the wall.
AS the wind whipped off the front end
| of this building, a heavy piece of wood
was driven into the side of the head of
the manager, who was sitting al his
| desk The operator taking in the situa-
| ton gave a scream which was heard
fxra l,a faIa II.l,o
man who was in the exchange at the
| time grabbed the operator and fairly
slung her in a glass booth nearby and
slammed the door. The glass in this
| booth was not even cracked
Round House Demolished.
| The immense solid stone Frisco round
| house here was completely demolished
| and not a stone that was in the structure
| has vet been located. Not an engine was
| in the round house at the time box
| car loaded with sacks of cement was
| scattered over two miles Another box car
| loaded with broom straw. that was stand
| ing by the car of cement was overturn-
ed. but the broom straw was not dis
| turbed by the wind
| The two cotton gins of the town were
| completely demolished. One of the boilers
standing had all the steamnttings blown
| off and the iron door to this boiler was
| found two miles to the northeast As an
| instance of the suction force of the wind
| a substantial stone building in the south
west portion of the place lust east of
| where the cyclone first struck the town.
| had its entire front literally pulled out
| This building is fully twenty yards from
the path of the tornado. II was a gambling
hall and all the paraphernalia Is In plain
view todav
Found Wrong Hand.
| A L oil to1o
| hand of q man near the edge of the
| storms path. This man had his left hand
| cut off at the wrist by piece of whirling
| lumber. He had the idea that the member
| he found was his own. He was crazed
| from his experience and 1t was only when
| he was shown his right hand and the
| member he found was a right hand. that
| he became reconciled. Fe Is now In the
| hospital too crazed to talk coherently
| Twenty people were rescued from
| storm cellar this morning having been
| imprisoned by light debris. None of them
were injured Less than forty yards away.
4 in another storm cellar. three people were
| found dead. The roof had been carried
away and wreckage was sent crashing
into the hole. Every telephone pole in
town except one, was blown down.
Electrician Russell OF the Vernon ex-