Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1910-08-31
REPORT los DEAD
IN FOREST FIRES
Fire Fighters In Idaho Said
To Have Perished
WALLACE IS PARTLY BURNED
Other Towns Are Endangered-Situ
alton in Montana criticaI-SoI-
diers Are Fighting Flames
Relief Parties on Way

Spokane. Wash. - One hundred
fire fighters are reported dead
in the flooded canyon near Wallace.
Idaho, and five citizens were burned
TO death in their homes as result of
forest fires which for sixty days have
terrified the Occur d'Alene country
and which spread to the town of Wal
lace, the metropolis of the mining dis
trict.
More than third of Wallace is
burned. The Pacific. 41ichigan and
Occur d'AleDe hotels, two o. R. & ".
depots. big hardware warehouse and
$50 to 200 residences are destroyed.
The town is almost dark by day and
the heavens and surrounding coun-
try seething mass by night.
The Province hospital, filled with
patients, is believed safe, although
only hill separates It from the burn
ing district.
The most dangerous fires are now
scattered over territory 100 miles east
and north of Spokane. The Northern
Pacific, o., R. & N and the Spokane
electric lines are running extra trains
to suffering districts.
Mayor Pratt of Spokane has received
a distress call from Mullan and Wal
lace appealing for rs trained nurses,
doctors and other aid. Twenty badly
burned persons were brought from
Mullan. The fighters and nurses now
on the scene are utterly exhausted.
During the last few days the fighters
have been exploding dynamite from
limbs of tall trees with a hope of sha-
king the clouds and invoking rain.
This proved successful in one place
for a short time, but insufficient rain
fell to quench the vast fires.
Newport, Wash, town of 1000, is
burning, but the loss of life is as
yet unknown. Cries for help are be-
ing answered as rapidly as relief par
ties can be made up. All available
soldiers in this part of the country
are pressed into service. The latest
reports are that the loss in the town
of Wallace alone is more than a half
million.
The seriously injured, mostly fire
fighters, will number. according to
the statement of w. r. Weigle, forest
superintendent of the CoeUr dAlencs,
more than 100. Many of them have
been stricken blind and others have
broken limbs.
Three families OF homesteaders,
comprising Is persons. are believed
to have persisted in La Tour creek,
near Catoldo, Idaho, in the forest fires.
At many points hundreds are
hemmed in by narrowing wall of
flames and it is impossible to reach
them with help.
From Wallace came reports that the
town of Burke is in flames and certain
of destruction. The fire rangers in
that territory are so exhausted that
no effective battle against the flames
can be made. The 300 residents of
the town are in flight toward Wallace.
Forest Ranger Pulaski reports to
Superintendent Well that six of his
men are dead, five having been smoth-
cred in the War Eagle tunnel, where
the entire crew took refuge.
Ranger Bell reports IL dead, three
permanently blinded and 10 suffering
from broken legs.
In the hills near Sand Point, Idaho,
Forest Ranger Van Dycke and a crew
of IS enlisted in Spokane are report
ed surrounded by flames.
A woman and her daughter per-
ished at Cabinet, Idaho.
Five and perhaps more are known
TO nave died near Newport, Wash, in
an attempt to reach the town.
All along the Great Northern and
Northern Pacific tracks between Spo-
kane and Helena numberless fires are
known to be raging fiercely, but def
mite reports cannot be secured, as the
telegraph and telephone wires are all
down
Before Communication with Libby.
Mont. ended it was reported that
every male resident of the town was
working, with 200 paid ffe fighters, 60
divert Flower creek to the south side
of the village as protection against
the flames driving up from that direc-
ton.
From Thompson Falls to the Idaho
line. along the Clarke fork of the Co
lumbia. nothing but flames greet the
eye on either side of the stream.
Couriers have been sent out to warn
all settlers and similar policy is be
ing pursued in the Bitter Root valley.
where a number of new fires have
broken out The worst fires in the his
tory of the Kootenai national forest
are reported from Libby. The town of
Troy is seriously threatened.