The Elk Mountain pilot., 1909-08-26
MORE COLORADO
FLOOD DAMAGE
HEAVY LOSSES ALONG THE AR
KANSAS RIVER BELOW THE
ROYAL GORGE.
CANON CITY SUFFERED
RAILROAD AND ELECTRIC LINES
DAMAGED-MANY FARMERS
LocE CROPS AND STOCK.

Denyer.-Reports continue to come
In OF damages by the heavy rains. A
Canon City dispatch Wednesday night
says: The flood that swept the valley
of the Arkansas last night was dupli-
Gated this evening. when a cloudburs
on Four Mile creek sent down the
river a second torrent equal to that
of yesterday. Panic spread throughout
the city and hundreds of persons liv-
ing in the lower sections of the town
fled for safety to higher ground. laden
with such personal and household eff
fects as they could carry in their
arms.
The river here began to rise shortly
after 6 O'Clock and by o'clock the
water had reached a stage as high as
the flood OF last night. The water
flowed over the floor OF the principal
remaining bridge.
The electric power plant was dam
aged and this city and Florence are in
darkness.
That more serious damage was not
done was due solely to the fact that
the torrent yesterday had swept 1way
everything movable in its path. de-
stroying two bridges and much prop
erty here. and nothing remained in
the path OF tonight's flood.
BY 10 O'Clock the crest of the rise
had passed and all danger was over.
The Denver & Rio Grande tracks be-
tween Canon City and Salida were
In
IT will be almost a week before com
plete repairs can be made. The tracks
through the famous Royal Gorge are
almost q complete loss, although the
hanging bridge was not damaged.
Officials OF the Rio Grande are now
going over the line. but they cannot
be communicated with on account OF
telegraph wires being down.
Crops were damaged to some extent
IN the iowlands and cattle. hogs and
chickens were drowned. but the or
chards escaped injury.
A Salida dispatch says: AS the re-
suit OF a flood at Howard. small sta
ton on the Rio Grande. twelve miles
east OF Saiida. about midnight last
night. DR.. ID. ID. Hamilton. his wife and
Walter Alexander narrowly escaped
death from flames.
Torrents OF water came down the
mountain sides. flooding cellars and
several homes. The basement OF the
Howard hotel was filled with water
and Hamilton. the proprietor. tried to
save some OF the provisions, and went
downstairs with lamp and an eSplo-
sion followed from the fumes OF an
overturned gasoline can.
Miss Dollie Beason. the telephone
operator at Howard. was carried from
the office by friends as the operating
room was filled with water. and mar
rowly escaped death.
Pueblo dispatch says: Pueblo es-
capped DANCE from the flood in the Ar
kansas river OF Tuesday night, but re-
ports received this evening have
caused new apprehension. The Ar
kansas river began to fall at c o'clock
tonight.
Train service to the West out Of
Pueblo was completely demoralized.
Serious damage was done to crops
in the bottom lands along the river be-
tween here and Canon City. The river
It's many
but this had the effect OF saving Pu-
eblo from extremely high water.
The bridges across the Arkansas
were lined with people all day who
were watching for the expected flood.
Many Of the poor people spent the day
in fishing for timbers in the river.
Hundreds of watermelons were caus ut
in nets by those stationed along the
levee.
Palmer Lake dispatch says: One
Of the severest storms that ever
struck here caused considerable dam
age Wednesday afternoon in and
about Palmer Lake. The barn OF T. A.
Hanks on the old Ben Lomand ranch
was struck by lightning and burned.
The loss is about $4,000. The barn
was q large structure, 100 feet long,
forty feet wide and three stories high.
At Pine Crest lightning struck the
bowling alleys just after a party OF
players had left it. The damage there
is about $500.