Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1908-06-28
Wind Drives Water and Makes Cloud
Eye Cannot Penetrate.
TROLLEY CARS ARE FLOODED
One Struck by Lightning and Pas.
sen"ers Are Slightly Cut
TRAFFIC STOPS IN PLACES
ChRutRuqua Tent ut Benson BIoyvs
Down, Fire West of RppyH
Hollow, Small One at
kruG Park.

aspects, the heaviest rain Of the season
| struck Omaha at 7:17 last evening. For
the period Of its duration it simply eclipsed
! anything this spring and Omaha has had
some big downpours. The rain started In
those large, seructive drops and within a
few seconds those drops we're multiplied by
the millions, the wind came up and the
city was in the grip OF elements that cast
an ominous foreboding. The volume OF
water tremendous, but wind that
twisted ii blew carried the water in
vast sheets this way and that until the
city appeared TO be enveloped in an Inn
penetrabe sea.
The thunder and lightning which accom-
! panied the rain and wind made II a typical
electrical storm. The mercury had risen
! to 80 degrees at p. m. and the day was
warm, growing more sultry toward evening
The sky first became murky, then turned
to that suspicious yellowish green.
In few minutes paved streets were filled
to the curbing and in many places the
water overrun the curbing and backed up
into stores. This was the case particularly
where the water came with too great vol
ume for the sewers to carry 1t away. Street
car say the worst intersection
traversed by the cars is at Tenth and Jack
son streets Here the water was fully n
foot in depth and 1t was several inches deep
all the way from Farnam to Jackson The
entire distance of the Tenth street line from
Farnam to Bancroft showed great depth
and in many places for blocks the tracks
were entirely invisible. The same situation
existed along many other tracks in the city.
Cars Scenes of ThriIIers.
The street cars were the scenes of many
thrilling experiences. The rain came Just
at time when many persons were leaving
. . I..g. 49,.
! and in many Instances passengers rode
l from one end OF line to the other rather
than attempt to get off in the binding.
Q beating storm OF wind, rain, thunder and
5 lightning.
On South Tenth street a man got off a
I car going south and before he could get
through the swfty-fowing stream in the
street he was blinded by the terrific ele.
: merits and fell sprawling on his face. The
: water deep that It almost covered
his PROSTATE body He finally managed to
gain his feet and landed on the sidewalk
, by a desperate effort.
AT Twenty-fourth and Spencer streets the
Twenty-fourth street cars were tied up for
= a period by the complete submerging OF
= the rails under a great depth of water.
Traffic was not only dangerous it was Inn
possible.
a Farnam westbound car was struck by
lightning Thrty-eighth street and
e every window was demolished The glass
fell in showers all over the passengers
cutting some OF them slightly and soaring
most Of them severely. There were many
: women aboard and they with the men, left
Il the car and plunged through the storm for
T. their homes.
= Umbrellas Raised in Cars.
. Rounding the corner at Forty-first and
= Davenport, a car coming from the terminus
!, at Fortieth and Cunning. was all but
a washed off its tracks by a gigantic breaker
q driven by terrific wind 1t was a closed
y car, but the water beat through on the
10 passengers II It had been an open car
: and women raised their umbrellas in sheer
70 desperation These cars on the Farnam
n line are Of the small, antiquated type and
) they proved utterly incapable of affording
d anything like adequate protection from the
rain when II came the worst, as is availa-
bic in one OF the modern cars.
n Persons on summer cars presented sorry
sights They had no alternative that prom
- ised relief for getting off meant facing
wind and rain the eye could not penetrate.
1t was an III season for signs and sign
boards and served once more TO show up
~ some OF the dangers Of the large. heavy
~ overhead sign. Several Of these were torn
tv from their moorngs and hung in menacing
y suspension over the sidewalks, or were
m flung with deadly force TO the pavements.
~, In many portions Of downtown Omaha
q, streets were strewn and Uttered with boxes
~ and signs. Al Twelfth and Farnam an
NJ immense triangular bulletin board belong
ing to some employment agency. lay in the
4. middle of the street and on down in the
a. wholesale district fruit boxes and crates
NJ were numerous the bare In a hurdle
,Ir race.
"a Telephone Wires Down.
re Telephone lines were crippled severely,
and railroads were apprNhenslve. The Ne
braska Telephone company announced that
e its wires were down in all directions; not
totally cut off. but were hit here and there
10 so that complaints of wires out of service
were pouring in. And yet the service
seemed to be remarkably good under the
circumstances. The telegraph wires stood
ne the strain.
A. As a matter of pTecaution and TO look out
in for infirm roadbed, the Burlington sent out
IN an inspection train just ahead of it's west.
a. bound passenger which left Omaha about
s o'clock, in the vortex OF the storm.
as While paved streets were turned int
.te ! rivers. unpaN ed streets were turned into
IN impassahlo gufs OF mud. OF course theI,
-o- are none such except on the outskirts o.
-iu the city and in the city where PAYERS wer'
.ar at work Farnam from Forty-second e
Ike Forty-fourth had just been nicely pre-
he pared for the laying of asphalt Mcnda!
morning by Hugh Murphy. The machiner!
for laying the paving had scarcely beer
IN located at the corner Of Forty second an,
Faruam late yesterday evening when TN
I'M storm broke hose And that street vii
not be In its nice state OF preparation
when Monday morning comes. Great gul
leys were cut in the loose earth all tn
an way along.
led Whoever prophesied a cyclone for Ben
ro- son while the Chautauqus there wa
ms either a prophet or the son OF prophet
d. for baby cyclone visited that health,
Y, young suburb. No buildings were wrecked
hut fha fant In which tn chaIihanntla MA