Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1912-07-26
CLOUDBURSTS AND
DEVASTATING FLOOD
SWEEP COAL FIELDS
Towns Are Destroyed and
Scores Are Dead in Western
Pennsylvania and in West
Virginia
fRr Annotated Prssn.N

(By Associated Press.)
PITTSBURG, Pa. July 25.-When
dawn spread its light over western
Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio and West
Virginia this morning it revealed to
scene of desolation. touched here and
there with ruin and shadows of the
torrents death toll.
Early today there had been received
in Pittsburg reports that if verified,
will bring the total death list in the
three tide-smitten states up to three
score.
The roll of fatalities early today was:
Cniontown, Pa. Il drowned.
Smock, Pa. located in Redstone Val
ley, Il reported drowned
Grindstone, Ia. ~ miners missing
and reported drowned
At Lynn. Pa. two miners reported
drowned
At Wheeling, w. Va, three drowned.
At Lemont. Pa. mine. four miners re-
ported drowned.
At Fleetwood. Pa, H. L. King, his
wife and child drowned.
At New S1artinsville. six reported
/, drowned
Monongah. w. va. one drowned,
Fairmont. W. va. two drowned.
/ OF this list of 81 fatalities IL has
been possible to account definitely for
2S Those who are known to have met
death are at Uniontown, Wheeling, FL
lenwood. Feirmont and Monongah.
MINES FLOODED
/ There IS another danger source that
1 may add to the death toll A large
number of mines were flooded. Work
ingmen were compelled to fee for their
I lives Whether some or all of the
miners reported missing escaped drown
ing can only be ascertained by time.
1t will take months to clear some of
the mines of water.
Many sections of the flood territory
have not been heard from up to daylight
today. What has taken place at these
places is not known.
When the disastrous storms, cloud
bursts and floods swept over the large
area yesterday scores of the towns af-
hicted were just recovering from a
deluge that pelted them last Sunday
morning. Yesterdays storm drove hun
dreds of families from their homes.
Il residences weer damaged or completely
demolished. streets were torn up by the
/ mile, or piled high with tons Of debris
carried by the flood waters.
POLES UPROoTED.
] Poles were uprooted and wires
dropped to the streets, blocking COM
munication from many points and caus-
i ing darkness at many others Railroad
and street car facilities were practical
/ ly suspended until after midnight, when
! eHa otrf We ronafrad Or
debris moved along some of the routes
Dunbar. Pa, nine miles west of
/ Uniontown, is the center of the region
of desolation in Pennsylvania The
/ flood waters swept away homes and
business houses; did. serious damage
70 mines. furnace and coke plants and
/ spread terror into the hearts of thou
sands.
The food reached Dunbar at 2:15
p. m. j. w. Former. of the Central
hotel, was at his desk when the tele-
phone bell rang on the other end of
| the line was Albert Dunn, the bookkeep-
er of the A. V. Purnell Bluestone quar-
4 ries, two miles above the town.
THE WARMING.
There's an awful flood coming. Warn
the people quick. All the dams above
/ here have burst" Dunn shouted to Fon-
\ ner, who dropped the receiver and rush
/
/ of his lungs Former shouted to the peo-
pie in the streets to run for their lives
to the hillsides. The alarm spread like
wildhre and in an instant buildings and
| stores were evacuated by droves of peo-
| pie who rushed pellmell for safety on
| high ground. The warning came none
/ too soon. Fonner says it was one of
the quickest rushes of water imagin-
able"
Towns are cut off from railroad, mail
4 telephone and telegraph connections.
From West Virginia no reports can be
secured by the weather bureau, for al
most every wire from that state is
down.
IN COKE REGION.
1t was in the coke region that the
/ fury of the storm seemed to have been
spent. Uniontown, Dunbar, Lemont
/ Mount Braddock, Connellsville, all were
| inundated and suffered great damage
! The greatest loss Of life was due to
the flooding of the Superba mine at
Evans, nine miles from Uniontown. Fiji
teen miners are now accounted lost
Three are missing among the $50 en-
ployed at Lemont No. 1 mine of the H.
c. Prick Coke company, whose nine-foot
vein underlies that of the Superba
| workings.
Those who have penetrated the SUI
perba mine, where fifteen workmen
were drowned. describe an expanse OF
ruin within the workings caused by
the force of the inIushing torrents. "It
looks in there as if there had been an
I explosion of terrific force" said
member of the rescue party. THE
water ripped up the tracks and twisted
and bent the rails in all sorts of shapes,
In some places forming an almost inn
! passible barrier to our further entry"
tIt1OE 0OEOr0 E16NT