Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-07-05
ANFN. STORM
BREAKS ON |! n. LAKE 1 IKE
saItair Beach Etlveloped in Rag.
ing Waves and Sudden
Darkness.
THOUSANDS IN DIRE. PERIL.
3 WATER Piles in Mountains Flooding
Pavilion Pleasure Boat and Pas :
sengers Have Thrilling. Experience.

For an hour last night one of the,
worst storms in years ragged over Great
Salt lake. Lashed and whipped under
driving gale. Americas Dead Sea
piled It's waves iina fury that brought
terror to over 1000 pleasure seekers
at the Saltair beach resort, and I'M
periled tho lives of thousand bath
ers During that hour Of fearsome
dread the launch Irene. with Go pass
sengers on board, buffeted it's way
against the waves and rolling seas
!! and only by the skill of its master suc--
ceeded in a safe landing The fury
and strength of the storm is told III
the carrying away of 900 feet Of
staunch platform. That no fatality re-
suited is due to the prompt. energetic
81 and in several instances heroic work of
the officials and attaches of tho beach
X resort, ss. VI
The storm, almost unprecedented
broke With startling suddenness, 1t
X was the xeritable thunderboit from the
clear sky. The day was one Of sultrS
heat with cIoudless sky Until towards
sunset the dark clouds with the faint
fash OF the lightning and the distant
w
1t was all so distant and far away that
the pleasure seekers paid little heed
and the bathers continued their sport
{ In The water.
e. Mid WAVES AND DARKNESS.
In an instant, however, the storm
Z loosened, and in the same instant the
4 WIND swept across the lake. piling the
water into waves that literally hurled
the bathers before them The terror
was added to by the sudden darkness. X
4 and lit was In the agony OF fright that
the batirers battled to reach the bath
Il houses. ii, e; S S5$ & II
The majority OF those in the water
succeeded in reaching the lighthouses,
& but several found themselves unable
Il to fight the strength of II til q waves.
= Some of these were carried by the
q waves to the shore hlle3others but for
the heroic efforts of Earnest Larson.
4 in charge OF a little gasoline launch
used For the purpose Of caring for
the bathers. would have succunlbed to
the water DEATH i
FATHERS SEEK PAVILION.
a Those who reached the bathhouses
Il safely still found themselves in a pre-
4 carious condition as the waves were
n over the flooring of the houses and
y seemed to threaten the carrying away
d of the structure. Gathering what
clothing they could many Of those Who.
y had been in the water sought safety IL.
$ths main PAVILION clad only in their
Il bathing suits. i y rs #e5
During the storm the visitors at
y Saltair hudd led themselves in @themaip
pavilion, and looked upon the storm
with terror. Wlen8i was recalled that
the launch Irene was out on the lake
with IS passengers the alarm became
s3frrs fx,y. II, fa}1tf {r,P
hoard and which increased until the
e staunch little boat was seen coming
out az tho darkness breasting the
waves safely under the guidance OF
Captain Anderson. AS the craft was
/ moored and her passengers began to
land on the pier cheer after cheer
4 went out Ia the air.
By SToRYSOF PASSENGERS.
}s IT was a thrilling storysthe passen-
gers had TO tell, The Irene was about
10 miles out when the storm began,
8 Many women were among the pas
3 senEers, and in the first few minutes
50 he crowd became ranic-stricken. Cant.
~, Anderson quickly ordered everyone be-
low the deck, and then himself took
the wheel. Confined as they were, and
with the little craft tossed like cork,
Is a number Of the women became sea-
sick, and one or two tainted. Through
the skilful handling of his boat. how
ever, Capt. Anderson rode out the storm
and brought his passengers In safely.
STEAMER VISTA BEACHED.
5 About the only damage resulting from
"A the, storm WAS the Bleaching of the
steamer Vista, and the carrying away
4 of the platform leading from the pa
wilton to the bunk houses used by the
employees. When the latter was de-
stroyed one OF the employees was on the
platform and was thrown into the wa
Ter He managed to reach the shore in
safety and escaped without injury. The
Vista was torn from her mornings south
s OF the ship cafe and driven on the
beach near the salt works. t5st.
That no one suffered any severe in
jury or that any fatality resulted is