Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1909-09-24
TORNADO Sweeps COAST
New Orleans Was Cut Off
From World.
salt WATER IN STREETS OF MOBILE
Mississippi and Louisiana the Heav
lest Sufferers.-Rice and Cotton
Crops Badly Damaged. Only
Five Fatalities Reported.

New Orleans.-The West Indian
hurricane which had its origin below
Cuba and Porto Rico, reached New
Orleans and the gulf coast Monday.
At 3 in the afternoon it struck New
Orleans. At 4 o'clock it was blow
ing nearly fifty miles an hour. At
o'clock buildings were suffering
and reports from PlaQuemines parish
below the city and on the gull coast
indicated that the inhabitants had
been driven from their homes and
were in danger of their lives. Grad
ually communication with the city
became more difficult and wire after
wire was reported down.
Monday it left in its wake four
dead in New Orleans and perhaps
others along the gulf coast, though
no definite statements of mortality
in other sections have thus far been
received here. The property loss in
New Orleans will exceed 100000
and many houses were unroofed and
frail buildings in numerous instances
were partially destroyed. With all
wires down 1t was impossible to as
certain the loss of life or property
along the gulf coast.
The storm apparently moved in
land to southwestern Louisiana. We
locity of wind at New Orleans was
the most intense in the history of
the local weather bureau.
The Illinois Central railroad train
No. 6, known as the Chicago Fast
Mail was detoured over the tracks
of the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley
route via Baton Rouge, the tracks
of the Illinois Central route between
New Orleans and Kenner being un-
der water and many miles of track
age washed away. The Chicago Linn
tied, was deteured over the same
route.
From Biloxi and Scranton, on the
Gulf coast of Mississippi, meagre re-
ports tell of the damage to shipping
and buildings along the beach and SO
far as can be ascertained there have
been five lives lost.
Natchez, Miss, was cut off from
communication. Before communica-
tion was lost the wind had attained
a velocity Of SO miles an hour, the
power plant was out of commission,
putting the city in darkness. A num-
ber of trees were uproeted and sew
eral buildings unroofed.
Along the Texas coast no damage
has SO far been reported and this
section apparently has escaped the
force of the storm. In western Lou
isiana at Crowley and Jennings, con-
siderable property damage has re-
suited. The greatest damage is to
the rice crop. Two thirds of the un-
harvested crop is believed to have
been ruined.
So strong was the force of the
wind that the waters of the Missis-
sippo, backed up from the Gulf a
hundred miles below, rose three feet
at the New Orleans levee.
Between Beauvoir and Debuys 500
feet of the track of the Gulf Coast
Traction Company Is washed away,
another hundred feet is gone near
the soldiers home and to the east
ward of Gulfport another hundred
and fifty feet was washed away. All
the bath houses and piers along the
beach from Gulfport to the home of
United States Senator Money, q dis
lance of four miles, have been swept
away. The driveway, known 40 The
Beach Road" along the coast in front
of Biloxi is completely gone, entail
ing a loss of $4,000 to $4,000.
Jackson, Miss, had its worst night
experience in many years. The city
was in total darkness, both electric
light plants being down and out, as
also telephone and telegraph wires.
The .Clarion-Ledger was set up by
candle light until the power went on
The wind blew a gale most of the
night and the rain came down In
sheets. Inestimable damage has
been done.
Att o'clock the water was wash
ing over the wharves along Mobile
river front. Many small bUats were
lost. People along the Alabama
coast began flocking there for safe
ty.
The government steamer General
Batchelder had to swerve round
large waterspout in Mobile bay. The
officers of the boat reported that the
roaring of the water could be heard