Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1912-06-22
Two HEAVY RAIN
STORMS SUNDAY
IN THIS COUNTY
Rainfall Was Two Inches, Great
test In Any June For Twenty
Years-Trees UprOoted.

Two unusually heavy rain storms
swept over Martinsburg and Berkeley
county Sunday, extending over good
part of Western Maryland and Vir-
ginia, and doing considerable damage
in many localities The rain in the
morning lasted several hours and, in
this section, was Y2accompanied by
thunder or lightning For the greater
part of the time 1t rained very hard,
but the good done to growing crops
was of inestimable value.
Between $50 and o'clock Sunday
evening a rain storm swept over this
county from the west that was al
most unprecedented In its severity.
The rain came down in torrents for
half an hour, accompanied by high
wind, vivid lightning and loud peals
of thunder. Trees were uprooted,
telephone and other wires knocked
down, fields washed and some build
ings unroofed.
Although this city was right in the
path of the storm the damage here
was not so great as in some sections
that the storm swept over.
Two large shade trees at the resi-
dence of Mr. W. Z. Hoffheins, corner
of West Martin street and North
Maple avenue, were uprooted by the
force of the wind and blown across
Maple avenue, blocking traffic there
until they were removed, and badly
damaging his newly laid concrete
pavement.
A telephone cable along South
Queen street at the High School
building was blown down, while wires
were knocked down all over town.
At Big Springs, along the Wincbes-
ter pike, IL miles south of town,
the wind blew down three large trees
in front of Mr.. James Folks.
The top of the barn at Mr.. Lewis
Clohan's, near Big Springs was un-
rooted.
Out along the Williamsport pike
there was also some damage done by
the wind storm. A lot of fencing was
blown across the pike about two
miles north of town, while the end of
stable at the Jones place in the
same neighborhoodN was blown in.
A lot of apple trees were uprooted
at Mr. Ben Brathwaites place, south
of town.
Lightning struck tree near Pish.
ops mill Sunday evening.
Many trees were uprooted and fields
washed and flooded west of town by
wind and rain.
The spire on the First Methodist
church, corner of West Burke street
and Maple avenue, was slightly twist
ed out of perpendicular by the force
of the wind.
The downpour of rain was enor-
nous on Sunday. Weather Observer
George w. Van Metre, this city, re-
ports that the rainfall Saturday and
Sunday was ga inches, divided as
follows: Saturday, Nv; Sunday from
to a. M, 1.55; Sunday evening As,
or total of inches for Sundays two
storms.
Mr.. Van Metre says this was the
heaviest precipitation in the same
length of time in any month of June
for twenty years. He also states that
the heaviest June storms in that per-
iod have always occurred on the Is,
16 and II, fact worth remembering.
The d. & o. railroad tracks at View
erton were badly flooded, while on the
Metropolitan Branch of the b. & o..
Railroad, east of Washington juno
ton, trains We're held up Sunday even
Ing while by trees across the tracks.
Many telephones in this county
were put out of service by the storm
Sunday evening.
Limbs of trees were blown across
the wires of the Martinsburg Power
plant between here and the Potomac
river but they were all removed Sun
day evening after the storm without
hindeTance to the transmission of
power.
The Opequon and Tuscarora creeks
overfowed their banks at places Sun
day evening but little damage is re
ported.
Many persons here were deferred
from taking il the B. & 0. excursion
to Cumberland Sunday morning by
reason OF the heavy rain. But it
wasn't raining In Baltimore or Wash
ington then and so many excursion
lists from those cities came here to
spend Sunday.