The sun., 1908-05-13
TORNADOKILLS 10; MANY HURT
FIERCE NTORH SWEEPS PLtTTE
RIVER IILLEI IN NEBR iNk I.
MreCkaEe Of Homes and Towns SireWn Tor
Twenty Miles Town Of Fort crook In
Ruins Bellevue college Demolished
Railroad bridge lated From Piers.

OMAHA, Neb, May u For twenty miles
the Platte River Valley in eastern Nebraska
is tonight strewn with the wrckages Of
homes.
A dozen towns are toru to pieces, ten
persons are known to have Nren killed, forty
seven are known to he injured, and reports
are hourly arriving Of other damage.
The town Of Fort Crook ten miles from
Omaha, is in ruins and the United States
troops are ~ charge Of the resclle work NJ
that place.
Bellevue College. the Presbyterian uni
yersity of the West. IL in ruins several Of
the buildings being completely destroyed
and every one more Or less injured This
college was built with New York and Penn
syvania donations and an appeal has been
made already for funds to rebuild.
Louisville was probably the hardest hit
Of any Of the dozen towns damaged. At
( O'Clock. accompanied by heavy electric
storm and dpluge " rain, q tornado struck
the place killed -four people, injured
eighteen others aud practically destroyed
the town, twenty-five business houses
being wrecked, as well ~ Il number OF
residences,
The Burlington depot and several
churches were blown aWav. The Missouri
Pacific bridge across the Platte River was
moved three feet from its foundations
and redepUated on the piers without IN
Jury to the structure Passing To the north
VI the river, the storm struck Meadow, Neb.,
DESTROYING a number of houses and in
turing five people Three loaded freight
cars were iftel bodily and thrown into
the river
Richheld was the next town struck.
Here Elmer leeder. a boy, was killed.
1 k. f,E har nd "a hap
were fatally injured, and number OF Others
more or less injured. A dozen houses were
wrecked.
At Fort Crook, fifteen miles south Of
Omaha the storm first hit the town and
practically destroyed IT, Most Of the
houses were one story affairs and every
one was demolished Fifteen people are
reported injured, Troops from Fort Crook
army post Immediately took possession OF
the town and tonight are patrolling the
ruins. The property loss here is about
$3.50 900.
At the army post Sl2j 0OO damage was
done TO the post buildings, but none of the
soldiers was injured.
Bellevue College, three miles from the
fort was next IN hne and great damage
resulted here. Two Of the big buildings
were destroyed entirely and six Others
badly damaged. Three women were killed
at Bellevue and nine people were injured,
several fatally.
A trolley car filed with students from
the college was run by the motorman into
deep cut and stopped while the storm
leaped the cut without injuring any Que,
Near Papillion Martin Tighe and son
were driving. The storm picked up the
buggy, threw il into ditch and pinned
the men beneath the wreckage 10 such a
manner that both were drowned by the
rain.
la Platte is reported demolished, but no
direct information can be secured. Nemaha
City, the home Of Gov. Sheldon is reported
no badly torn up but no one was killed A
number are reported injured,
A Burlington train near Louisville was
chased by the cyclone ten miles and es-
capped only because Of a turn In the track
which carried il out Of the track Of the storm.
The passengers In the coaches could see the
funnel shaped cloud closely following the
train and destroying tho houses near the
track.
The engineer opened the throttle and kept
ahead OF the cyclone, which followed the
river along the banks Of which the railroad
is built,
A Rock Island freight train near Louis
vile was halted while the storm swept
across the track few rods in advance.