The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1911-10-05

RE Dam Gives Away and
hundreds Are Swept ID
Their Death
up; ADS TO TIE HORROR

pennsylvania Towns Almost
vtpcd Out By Water and F1re-An
,.emrt Was Made to- Warn the In
,-hi,ants Of the Towns below the
n.m But Not in Time tO Save
rhcir IiveS-t;as Pipes Bursted,
-. Ignit>-d, Adding To the Horror
fthe scene.
roadersport. Pa, Sept. 30.-With
-.,- that could be heard for miles,
- grra, dam of the Bayless Pulp
- paper Company. at Austin, Pa,
teen miles from her, went out at
.aa O'Clock this afternoon. Forty
,.4.es had been recovered from the
ms when darkness came this after-
.,or and ii is estimated that fully
,a6 arc unaccounted for and are be-
seged to be dead.
The dam, which was $40 feet long
and - fee high, was 80 feet thick at
,,e base. and held back more than
s7e hundred million gallons OF wa
rsr For the first time since its con-
struction two years ago, the water
zas running over the top to-day, and
nanv persons went out from Austin.
4 mile and a half away, to see the
unusual sight.
They were horried when a section
about twenty feet wide gave way on
the west side. A great volume of wa
ter poured through the hole and the
alarm was quickly sounded. People
ran for their lives to the hills near
By, but some were caught in the flood
and whirled down the valley. A mo-
ment later another break occurred,
this time on the east side. 1t was
much greater than the first and per-
mitted the bulk of the water behind
1t to rush in a mighty volume toward
the lOwlands.
Harry Davis, locomotive engineer
of this place, reached a telephone
and notified the operator at the ex-
change She called as many persons
as possible. But the time was short
The raging flood tore down the little
valley carrying death on It's debris
covered crest. Hundreds Of women
and children, the men were away at
work, we're caught in their homes
and drowned or crushed before they
knew what had happened. Houses
went down before the mighty on
rush Of water, and bent and broken.
released their dangerous fluid. Be-
fore the water had passed on it's ter
rible course through the town, a
dozen fires were burning in as many
places and the cries of injured and
imprisoned persons joined in the ter
rife thunder of the flood.
Much of the debris lodged against
the shops of the Buffalo and Susque-
hanna Railroad, and there the fire
ragged fiercest. Many men were caught
here, and it is believed that few, il
any, escaped with their lives.
The course of the food was
through the business center of the
little vilalge. A majority of the
buildings were of wood and those
which were not Immediately wrecked
by the torrent were soon in flames
So sudden was the onslaught OF
water that many persons had no time
to fee to the hills, but others re-
ceived warning and, believing 1t was
IRE, fastened to the center of the
town, only to be caught in the f1ooc
and swept away.
The food passed quickly, leaving
desolation in it's wake. Houses hat
been crushed and tossed about like
toys, while hundreds of bodies ha(
been carried down on the crest of thu
surging torrent
With the passing Of the water
those who had fed to the hills has
tened to return to their ruined home
IN search of relatives and friends
here and there bodies had been cas-
up along the path of the torrent, am
about forty bodies we're recovered II
short time.
Some of them had been so badl
battered by the tossing debris tina
they We're beyond recognition, Will
others had been carried along wit
no apparent injury. Many wer
caught in burning buildings, and
Will be days before the real exten
OF the calamity will be known. It
believed that no less than 400 pei
sons persisted, and some estimate
are hi0bor