The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1908-06-20
BABY HURRICANE
WORKS HAVOC IN
DETROIT
pEMoLIsHEs TREES AND uN-
ROOFS ONE 6UILplNo--MAN
ON FORD skYscRAPER HAS
CLOSE CALL FROM DEATH.

| A drenchlng rain storm. accompau
led by gale that at one time reached
velocity Of 60 miles an hour. broke
upon Detroit shortly before o'clock
Friday afternoon. causing consider
able havoc In various sections OF the
city. There were no fatalities either
on land or on river. but many narrow
escapes.
W. Fl. Clinton, q foreman IN the
employ of the iutun e. general
| building contractors. was at work OH
the roof OF the Ford building. laying
board platform near the northeast
corner. when the gale swept down
upon him with the force OF a hurri.
cane. Before he realized 1t he was
being swept to the edge OF the root
along with a pile OF loose planks. He
had presence OF mind enough to cling
to projecting iron pipe until the
storm had subsidized sufficiently u
enable him to reach the roof door
In safety.
The planks were hurled to the
street below and one OF them shat
tered a large plate glass In the re-
volvlng doorway Of the Union Trust
building. Another was hurled back
against the Ford building. shattering
plate glass window. A peculiar
Fl eak OF the storm was that Clinton's
hat. which was blown from his head.
was returned to the roof. which shows
that the storm had some Of the ear
marks Of cyclone.
A 40-foot section of roof was blown
off the building occupied by the
Mitchell Storage & Carriage Co. at No.
2aG Rivardst., and II struck the house
occupied by r. c. James, manager or
the company, at No. 233 Champlain-
ST., demolishing a chimney. wrecking
the front porch and piling II with de-
bris. Mrs. James, wife Of the man.
ager. had just returned from neigh
boring grocery and was on the porch
when the roof struck. Bricks and
huge splinters fell all about her. but
she escaped without scratch Be-
lieving the house had tumbled down
she feared greatly for the safety Of
her two children. Margaret. aged 4.
and Charles. aged 2. She crawled
through a window into the sitting
room and found them safe but terribly
frightened.
Trees were blown down in several
sections of the city. carrying wires Of
all sorts with them. Motorman
George Firman narrowly escaped seri-
Gus injury when a large tree struck
the vestibule OF his car on Third-ave.,
near Charlotte. The Detroit United
Railway had Al trouble" calls within
few minutes after the storm, but in
spite OF the fact traffic was speedily
res umed ON all lines.
A party consisting OF some "a mem
bers OF the graduating class OF the
Monteith school were out In launch
off Windmill Point as guests Of Merle
Bennett, youngest son of Coroner John
F. Bennett. when the storm brike.
They were heading for The Woods"
resort on the Detroit side and to those
on shore 1t seemed that they must
perish. But everybody kept their
heads and the launch made shore in
safety, though the members OF the
party were drenched.
Stone ornaments were blown of two
OF the smaller steeples of the Wood
ward-ave. Baptist church and one of
them poked hole through the roof.
Several persons noticed for the first
time that the large steeple leans
slightly To the east and 1t was report
ed that the storm had done IT,.