Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1912-04-12
FLOOD AT MONTPELIER.
Swiftly Rising Torrent Fills all
Store Cellars.

Montpelier, April 7.-At 8:15 this
evening the Winooski river, swollen by
the heavy rain, broke across the tracks
in the Wells river railroad yards and
came in torrent down Barre street to
Main so swiftly that many pedestrians
were caught in water up to their knees.
The water rushed down Barre street to
Main and thence to State, where it met
the North Branch, also out of its banks,
so that Main street, from the foot of
Clay hill and the entire length of Elm
street, and the residential section of the
meadow and State street are below
water from one to three feet deep. The
river is still rising.
Damage in the business section is
great, as thousands of dollars worth of
goods is stored in the filled cellars, the
water reaching to the first floor. The
loss is roughly estimated at 500, 900.
Several merchants refused to believe
today, when warned, that the water
would rise, and did not move their
stocks. Local telephone lines are out
of commission, the telegraph is likewise
"out," no trains can get in and the
trolley service is crippled. One car was
caught on Main street and is held there
tonight.
1t is the worst flood that Montpelier
has had and Barre is worse off. Little
ice is being carried so that the damage
thus far has been confined mainly to the
wetting of goods in store cellars.
The stoneshed section and part of the
Wells River railroad yard were flooded
early in the afternoon. Berlin street
was impossible from the Granite street
bridge to the Pioneer and on the other
side of the river the road was under
water to the Barre transfer. Between
Benjamin Falls and the Dodge crossing
the street car lines were afloat, the
last car coming through from Barre
at 2:15.
During the afternoon large number
of boys gathered on the suspension foot
bridge leading from the electric car
tracks across the Winooski to the
Country club near the gas house. The
upper edge of the bridge was caught by
a stick of driftwood and the floor turned
bottom up, the steel cables swapping
like twine. Toni Lamperti and John
Malnatti were thrown into the boiling
water among the cakes of ice and drift
wood, but were able to pull themselves
out with the aid of a few section men
and others who heard the crash and ran
to their aid.
Daniel Murly was struck by a flying
end of the cable and his face severely
scratched. Edward Clark, son of Mr..
and Mrs. A. l.. Clark, was struck by
beam and pinned to the ground, the side
of his face and neck being bruised and
it was feared several ribs were cracked.
Joseph and Louis Ala, Homer Niles,
a Polini boy and several others who
were on or near the bridge at the time
escaped to the bank with minor scratches
from flying timbers.
AT SIX O'Clock the water was over the
stringers of the steel bridge on Langdon
street and cakes of ice were gathering
against the under side of the floor
This presented the worst danger point
in the city as any large mass of ice or
few logs would make a jam which
would take out the bridge and probably
jam it against the wooden Rialto few
yards below
The property damage will exceed the
big St. Valentine day flood in 1900.
Practically every merchant in the city
will lose more or less, some making
rough estimates of $500 to $700 dam
age tonight, when the water was still
rising.
The trolley and steam lines, city street
department, many dwelling house