The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1906-01-12
FORTY FAMILIES
ARE ENTOMBED
landslide Carries Down Two City
Books.
AT LEAST FIFTEEN ARE KILLED
Edge Of Street at Haverstraw, N. Y, Is
Preclpltated Over a Cliff Hundred Feet
Righ-POurteen Houses Carried Down, and
Ruins Take Fire Breaking Of Wster Mains
Makes Pire.fightlng Difficult

New York (SpeciaD At Haverstraw,
N. Y, an extensive landslide tore off the
edge of one of the streets for two blocks.
Fourteen dwelling were precipi-
tated over clay bank nearly 100 feet
high. At least IS persons are believed
to have persisted, while 40 families were
temporarily entombed in the ruins
Following are the known dead:
Mr.. Nelson, furniture dealer of Hav-
erstraw
Benjamin Nelson, his son.
Mrs. Silverman and her young son.
A Jewish rabbi, who was at the home
of the Nelson's.
Mr.. and Mrs. Cohen and FIVE children
The houses were all wooden structures
and all of them caught fire Immediately
after the land gave way. The work of
extinguishing the flames was made i'm
possible for the reason that the land
slide broke the water mains and shut
off the supply of water. Fire from the
burning buildings spread 10 other por-
tions of the village and for a time it
was feared that the entire place would
go. Shutting off the water in the broken
mains, thereby permitting the fremen to
use portion of the supply, and timely
aid from the neighboring village of Gar
nersville alone averted the threatened de-
struction
The landslide took place on Rockland
street, which is in the backyard sec
ton in the northern part of the village.
A rich bed of clay closely adjoins the
street, and for dozen years the brick
o-1 Ia haa 4 ,,,&0 k1n
bed deeper and deeper
Eventually they followed out hole
over hundred feet deep, and had gone
as close TO the side line of Division
Street as their rights permitted them.
There had been much litigation over the
encroachments of the workmerl, and many
efforts had been made by the village au-
thorities to secure injunctions restraining
the workmen going further.
The landslide came gradually at first.
The ground, weakened by the rain and
snow of the past few days, showed crew
ices near the edge of the street late in the
afternoon, and in the evening portions
of the bank began to give way. The
street was not thickly populated, for
most OF the former jewellers had left on
account of fear of just what happened.
Many of the residents left their houses
early in the evening before the final
crash came. The Nelson's, for instance,
were endeavoring to move their effects
and the rabbi was assisting them This
was also the case with Mrs. Silverman
and her son.
When the final slide came, it came so
suddenly that those who had fingered in
their houses kad absolutely no opportuni-
ty to escape The bank caved from
twenty 10 sixty feet in width at the top,
and for distance of two blocks from Di-
vision to Jefferson Streets lengthwise.
A portion of the south side of Division
street likewise fell.
The entire village was engaged either
in fighting the flames or in attempts to
search the wreckage. Up until 8 o'clock
it was next to impossible to discover
how many bodies were burned, for the
reason that the fremen had not at that
time entirely extinguished the flames.
Hon many have been entombed will
not be known for days, and it IS
possible that it may never be known, for
removal of the enormous amount Of fall
len earth would be work of months.
Another large crevice opened up along
Division Street, about hundred feet
from the edge of the bank, and there
is monetary danger of another land
fall quite as extensive, though it cannot
be as destructive as the other.