The searchlight. [volume] (Culbertson, Mont.) 1902-current, 1911-10-06

loss; various estimates up to 5000.
cover the survivors. The railroad
shops. where the debris is piled high.
and which resisted for a. time the
force of the water, probably will prove
to be the death chamber of the ma
;ority of the men who were employed
there. A rescuing party attempted to
reach the interior of the ruins but
were driven back by the smell Of
burning flesh.
Only One Grocery Store Left.
Strong men became towards, and
until help comes from the outside. lit.
tie can be done to ascertain the loss
or succor the injured. Those SO for.
tunate as to live above the line OF
food were called to help the survivors
Of the valley, and the food supply was
soon exhausted. as every grocery store,
with the exception of one small estab.
lishment. was swept away. Many
went without their evening meal.
The five or six churches in the town
are all gone, the only public institu.
lions left standing being the hospital
and the schoolhouse. They were above
the flood line.
Among the principal places destroy.
ed was the plant of the Emporium
Lumber Company, not a vestige of IL
being left. A part of the plant OF the
Bayless Pulp and Paper. Company,
whose dam gave way, also disappeared
updar Tho ro oipo mot ary apd th, rov,,
mercial hotel and Davis house went
down before the rush. The White
house, another hotel. was burned and
IL is believed that several persons per.
ished with the building.
Whole families have been wiped out.
Among them are some of the leading
people in the town, but in the dark.
ness and confusion 1t Is impossible to
tell just who are left. The number OF
the dead Is estimated at from $50 to
1000, the population Of the town hav.
ing been 5000 before the disaster.
Through all the three miles of the
valley the scene scarce loses the
aspect Of a gorge. Never more than
400 feet wide, and inclosed on two
sides by high hills, II allowed the
great wall of water but little oppor.
tunity to spread out and lose its force.
Down this the flood rushed.
A dangerous situation developed i'm.
mediately after the great wall of wa
ter had passed. Austin was piped for
natural gas and the great force of the
flood tore the mains from the streets.
One Of them. the largest pipe in the
town. burst In the business section. A
moment afterwards the gas rushed out
and in twinkling II had taken fire.
There was no explosion, but the flames
leaped to a height of twenty feet or
more and. blown by strong wind
were communicated to the nearest
house. In ten minutes a dozen other
gas pipes had burst and were pouring
their deadly infiamable fluid into the
air.
The dam which burst was a gigantic
concrete structure which in reality
was a double dam. II was located on
a hill a half mile above the village
and spanned practically the entire val
ley. which at this point is about one
third of a mile wide and banked by
high hills. The dam held back a wall
of water fifty feet deep and three quar-
tiers of a mile long normally as reserve
power for the great pulp and paper
mill which nestled at its base.
The Johnstown flood. which is re-
called by the Austin. Pa. disaster. &C.
he 40 81 4
1889. and 2.142 lives were lost and
was damaged to the extent
Of more than s9.500.0o0.
The Johnstown flood followed a
series Of heavy rains which caused
the breaking of a dam across the
south branch of the Conemaugh river.
Is miles above the city. The break
the waters of Conemaugh
lake, which was two and a half miles
long. one and a half miles wide, and,
In places 100 feet deep. This great
volume of water swept down the mar.
row valley at terrific speed. covering
the IS miles between the dam and
Johnstown in seven minutes.
In the valley between the dam and
Johnstown stood the villages of South
Fork. Mineral Point. Conemaugh and
On Decoration day, 1889,
there were approximately 10000 peo-
pie in these towns. The following day
Point was entirely wiped out.
with not house left standing. Meth
err was there building left standing
in Conemaugh. and as to Woodvale.
there has been a dispute ever since
the flood as to where the villages real.
ly stood.