The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1913-04-02
GLIMPSE OF THE
FEARFUL HAVOC
Wrought BY the Flood
~ At Dayton, Ohio.
CAME ON PEOPLE UNAWARES
And Swept Many Into Watery
Graves Without a Mo.
ment'S Notice.
PITIFUL SCENES WITNESSED

Dayton, via Lebanon, o., March
26.-Dayton has been devastated
by the food. The number of dead
10 one can even estimate. Beneath
the yellow sea of seething waters
there sleep 1,OOO-maybe 10000.
Destructive fires broke out in the
city and lighted the sky and murky
waters last night, making very
weird sight.
A great many rescues have been
>made and on every hand there are
eart-rending scenes
There are over 50,JU0 people
damned or the upper floors OF the
unsubmerged portions of the build
ings of the city. They are without
gas, clean water, light, heat or
food.
The electric light plants were put
out of business early in the day and
total darkness, coupled with tor
rental downpour, added to the hor-
rors of the night.
Famine also became an imme-
1liate possibility. All of the supply
And grocery houses are in the sub
merged district, and at midnight 1t
was thought there was not enough
bread to last the survivors another
day.
Breaking of the Arleton reser-
voir. which supplies the drinking
water, LETT the city without water
and physicians declare there is
great danger of typhoid in the use
of the flood water.
There are no boats in Dayton
which can breast the current and
those on the outside early gave up
any attempt to reach the business
y section.
9 At Wyoming street on the south
side where the National Cash Reg
lister Company conferred it's efforts
at rescue, many saved their lives by
creeping on a cable, a hundred feet
above the food.
At first linemen worked their
way along the cable, carrying tow
ropes to which the fiat bottomed
boats were attached. When the
food became so fierce that the boats
were no longer able to prevail
against it, men and women crept
along the cable to safety. Others,
less daring saw darkness fall and
gave up hope of rescue.
Those willing to risk their lives
in the attempt at rescue found
themselves helpless in the face of
the water.
Seventy Thousand of Dayton's
population. it is reported, are
homeless. The National Cash Reg
Z lister plant offers the only ha-
ven on the southside. Three wo-
men became mothers in the halls
OF it's office building last night.
In the woodworking department
of the National Cash Register COM
pany, boats were being turned out
at the rate OF 10 an hour. and these
were rushed to where the water
had crossed Main street In sort
of gully. The current was far too
strong for the crude punts, though
they were the best that could be
made in hurry. Trip after trip
was made and hundreds OF refu-
%ees were taken from this stretch
OF houses.
Then came the flames. Starting
at Vine and Main streets. they
jumped Main street and the houses
on the other side were soon afiame.
In the middle of the street were a
few frame houses that had been
washed from their foundations.
They were swirled about for time
and cast into the path of the flames.
Persons hurried from their roof
tops. to which they had been driven
Aby the FOOD. TO roof tops of adioin-
Ing houses. Then the sun went
down. leaving only desolate light
fror, the FIRE.
The first to seek safety by slid
Ing his body along the telephone
conduits was man. Then came
four women.
The first OF the women was Mrs.
Iuapa Meyers She Ii widow