The San Francisco call., 1905-03-14
Two Lives Are Lost
by Destruction OF
a Bridge.
Vessels Are Wrecked at
Long Beach and Piers
Are Demolished.
Crops in Orange Bet Injured and Rail
road Service Crippled by
Wind and ain.
Special Dispatch to III. Cam

Southern California received the
brunt of yesterdays storm. In Los
Angeles bridge across the Los An
geles River was washed away and two
i persons were drowned. Many others
were injured. In other southern coun-
ties the damage was great. Vessels
were wrecked, wharves destroyed and
other property at the beach resorts
blown down. The orange crops were
also injured. In Northern and Gen.
trail California the storm did little Ii
any damage. The downpour was well
coined i'm these sections.
LOS ANGELES. March 13.-Two
lives lost and five persons seriously
injured in the wrecking of a bridge
across the Los Angeles River this
morning; nearly $50 inches of rain
within thirty-six hours; cloudbursts at
! many points; railroad service crippled
by washouts so that no overland
trains reached this city to-day; four
small vessels wrecked at Long Beach;
thee pleasure piers demolished by
the waves on Santa Monica Bay and
ether damage done amounting TO $780,
coo there and large section of the San
Pedro breakwater trestle demolished
such is a partial record of the dam
age done by enc of the most severe
storms that has passed over Southern
California in a number of years.
The storm began Saturday with a
gentle rain, which continued until
Sunday morning, increasing in intensity
until Sunday afternoon. when the
wiz, Tf1-
city of forty miles an hour and the
rain descended in torrents. Sunday
right there was lull in the storm,
but this morning it was renewed with
added fury and tor two hours the rain
fell and wind blew with almost unpre-
cedented fury. Cloudbursts occurred
in many places, especially in the foot
hills.
the Los AngeIes River caused an acci-
de mt at Ii o'clock this morning which
cost two hives ana resulted IN the seri-
Gus INJURY of nve persons. On the
Seyentn-slreet bridge across the Los
geles River large crowd had col
leCted. The rushing waters under
mlred the supports and the whole
structure tell into the stream and was
carried away. TWO men whose names
have not been learned are known to
have been swept away and five others.
who chung 20 the timbers of the
wrecked bridge, were dragged ashore,
manned and bleeding. The most ser1-
cusly injured IS Mrs. Clara Webb, who
sustained a fracture of the skull. The
others injured are: A. b. Bragg. both
/ legs crusned; Alonzo Thomas. both
arms broken; Leonard Carmichel, in
ternally injured: j. Braggman, collar
lone broken and ribs fractured. Sew
eral other persons were severely in
jured, but were able to go TO their
homes.
The wreck of the Seventh-street
bridge took span of the Ninth-street
! bridge with it and there is now no
crossing over the river below Fourth
street.
About the time the bridge was car
rice away the Boyle Heights Methodist
Church was struck by lightning and
the steeple demolished. Three miles
away on West Eighteenth street a va
cant house was also struck by light
ming, ignited and destroyed.
Cloudbursts in the foothills caused
a total suspension of railroad traffic
in all directions. Trains to the north
, were held here since yesterday after
noon. At Burbank the Southern Pa
cific track was washed away for a
distance of a quarter of a mile or more
ard to the eastward there were wash
outs which prevented any trains from
that direction reaching this city.
The storm along the coast was even
more severe than in Los Angeles. At
Long Beach four pleasure steamers
were washed against the new pier and
lost. At Terminal Island the water
washed out the underpinning of several
beach cottages and the occupants were
obliged to seek other quarters The
most serious damage was at Santa
Monica Bay. There three pleasure
wharves were wrecked completely and
the three mile board walk badly dam
aged. At a resort known as Venice
hotel was being built at the end Of
a pier known as a ship hotel. This
was carried out to sea and wrecked
A carpenter was carried into the water
! and saved himself only by clinging
to a pile.
In the foothills there was tremend-
Gus rainfall La Canyada reports more
than four inches precipitation for the
storm and in the Pacoima Canyon
there was a fall of more than six
inches. causing a flow of water which
cleaned the canyon of trees and cot
tai ges. A family named Powell was
almost drowned, their house being car
/ ried a mile down stream. The occu-
pants saved themselves by hanging to
! the window sills.
Some idea of the intensity of the
storm may be had when 1t is stated
that not wire out of Los Angeles was