Los Angeles herald., 1909-01-21
NORTH VISITED
BY HEAVY GALE
RAINFALL MOST C0PI0US IN
MANY YEARS
ALL TRAFFIC AGAIN INTERRUPT
ED IN TWO STATES
Weather Bureau Declares Storm Is
Without Parallel in Recent His
tory-Wires Broken, Trains
Delayed
GBy Associated Press. ]

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 2O.-Accom-
panied by a gale that at times reached
velocity of sixty-five miles an hour
here tremendous rain storm, reaching
from the Oregon coast to a consid-
cradle distance south of the Golden
Gate, broke over this city and the whole
central portion of the state tonight.
Rain fell all day, but the wind came up
In the afternoon, continuing several
hours.
Telegraph and telephone wires were
! blown down and communication in all
directions was practically shut off for
several hours.
The storm abated somewhat late to-
night, but the barometer, which re-
corded a remarkable drop here, falling
nearly one-third of an inch in six hours.
remains very low, and more storm is
predicted.
The weather bureau officials classify
the storm as one of the most severe
known along the coast in many years.
Outside of the decentralization of tele-
graph and telephone wires, and at some
points the suspension Of street car traf-
fic owing to the failure of power cir
cults, no damage of any extent has been
reported from the interior tonight.
The most critical time will come to-
morrow, when the floods poured into
every river and stream by the foothill
country reach the lowlands.
At Dunsmuir, at the mouth of Sac
ramento canyon, the river marked the
highest point tonight it has ever
reached in the memory of the old resi-
dents.
When this volume Of water. reaches
the levees of Sacramento and Yolo
counties it is possible that those bar
riers will be carried away.
Modesto in Darkness
At Modesto nearly an inch Of rain fell
III twelve hours, and the resulting dam
age to the power ditch of the light COM
pany left the town in darkness for
some hours. The same condition OBJ
tained at Woodland and Marysville,
which report the worst storm in the
history of those sections.
The Yuba river rose two feet in TWEEN
ty-four hours, and the Feather, which
Is already high, is rising.
Railroad traffic about Marysville is
badly crippled, and passengers are get
ting in and out only by means of the
electric roads.
Oroville is in the same predicament.
but one train having succeeded in get
ting out in a week. The storm did con-
siderable damage around Sacramento.
cutting the capital off from the rest of
the state, and only one telephone wire
was working into the city. The light
service was suspended and car lines
were stalled for some hours, owing to
the carrying away of the power wires.
In this city the high wind created
great uneasiness in shipping circles,
and tugs were kept ready along the
water front to go to the rescue of any
vessel which might drag its anchor.
One small sloop got adrift and was
driven down the bay, but was recap
tured before it had done any damage.
Off the heads the waters over the bar
were exceedingly rough and the pilot
fleet was compelled to remain inside
The rainfall up to o'clock was 129
inches, and the downpour continued
into the night, though with less vio-
| lence.
The Southern Pacific Railroad com
pany reports tonight that it's routes to
Sacramento are in bad shape and con-
ditions are growing worse. The wind
stirred the flood waters along the tracks
to fury, and the waves constantly beat
ing against the right Of way have
gradually washed out the ballast in
many places. Trains that get over do
so at slow speed, delaying all traffic.