The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1907-02-07
worst STORM
OF THE WINTER
RAILROADS COMPLETELY TIED UP


The snowstorm which set in Sstur-
day morning and continued until
Tuesday morning, was the worst that
this section has experienced since
1883. All traffic VAS tied up on the
railroads from Saturday night until
yesterday Snow slides iu the m un-
tains covered the tracks in places to
the depth OF fifteen to thirty feet,
and while the storm ragged but little
headwsy could be made in clearing
ne I Multnomah fails, where the
mountains rise almost perpendicul.r II
fol- over thousand test, and the
snow kept sliding off the steep in
clines until it buried the track with
snow that packed solid az 1t fell. A
freight train that was caught made
the situation still worse, "a 1t had to
be literally dug out car at a time,
making it impossible for the rotary
snow plows to work at that point.
The private car OF Assistant Supt.
Campbell was the first to como
thr ough from The Dalles Monday
morning at nine O'Clock, with two
engines, and it proceeded west to
break the trail 1t was followed a
cou ole OF hours later by train 3,
which had lad at The Dalles since
Saturday. This train left Hood River
Monday afternoon aud got as far as
Viento. where 1t was stalled by the
continu ID sleet storm of ice and snow.
tuesday the train pushed down to
Shell Rock, ana late in the day sue
ceeded in reaching the boat and max
Ing a transfer. A rotary worked con-
tinuously from Portland in the snow,
aud also one from this end.
The latter part Il the storm was
half sleet, the little Particles OF hail
like Ice and snow rolling around like
wheat, and was In an ideal condition
to slide down Q steep mountain
aides. And slide 1t did, to the de-
spair OF the railroad crews. All the
available men we're put to work big
wages, and they we're followed by
work trains with mess cars and few
car loads of coal to keep up heat and
energy
The Mount Hood railroad was ~
badly crippled as the O. K. u N, tho
cuts filling up with snow, and slides
occurring wherever a steep hank pre-
cipitated the accumulations en- the
track. Supt. Early igged up a snow
blow Monday, which helped In the
hght to clear the track.
The depth of the snow was about
two feet on a level in the city, gradu-
ally increasing in depth rs the higher
elevations were reached. AT Mount
Hood 1t was reported four feet and
upwards, and fully six feet at Green
Point at the Stanley Smith mill.
The rural mail carriers started out
eacn day. and made the best part Of
the ioute, but Tuesday It was an al
most impossible job, as the crust on
the snow cut the horses legs. The
livery stables refused to seod out
horses except in cases OF extreme
necessity.
tuesday forenoon chinook set In,
but the current of warm air was high
In the air, and was not felt In the
city until afternoon. 1t was telt at
Mount Hood, however, and was. also
reported to he melting the snow fast
at The Dalles.
The stoim is playing havoc with the
telephone lines that crosse the Colum-
bia. The White Salmon and Bingen
lines have been out for t. days, aud
it has reen impossible to fix them.
Manager Bailey received word Mon
day that the line crossing the river ut
Caosade Looks to Stevenson went out,
while the lines between there and
Portland have been out OF commis-
sion since the first sleet storm. The
Wesetrn Union have had one line
orking, which has been used exclue.
lively for railroad business, but all
other lines are still down. Several
miles Ut poles are down, and 1t will
be q big Job to reset them. All the
available linemen In this part Of the
country have been sent to Portland
to help out the city 10 straightening
up the tangle, and that part u the
system will be put in order first.