The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-03-26
s TORNADO DEALS DESTRUCTION
MANY KILLED AND INJURED AND
VAST DAMAGE MARKS PATH
OF STORM.
Death List Will Reach to Hundreds
aud Millions Of Dollars Damage
Was Don6-StOrm Passed Whole
of Central Part Of Country.

More than 60 persons are reported
killed and hundreds more Injured
some mortally, 10y a storm of tornado
intensity which ragged over Central
western. Southern and parts of East
ern states ON Friday. Property dam
age will run well into the millions.
Definite adviCcS have been received
accounting tOr at least 10 persons
uead, with reports from points tenn
~porartly cut of from wire Communica-
ton by the storm adding hourly to
the list
Reports from Alabama show the
loss OF life was heaviest i'm that state.
the number of dead there being al
ready definitely placed at Is, with adj
ditiOnal fatalities reported but not
confirmed. The town of Lower
n fe1chtree was practically wiped out.
twelve are reported dead in Mis-
vsissippi.
Two are dead i'm Indiana. two i'm
Tennessee. two i'm Ohio two in New
Louisiana
Accompanying the death lists are
lists of injured totallng more than
EOO' with additions coming i'm at brief
intervals. Coming up out of the
southwest early Friday morning just
as spring was ushered I'm. the storm
swept with startling suddcnness dag
onally across the country from north
ern Texas to western Pennsylvania
and New York. and the Great Lakes
Shtttng winds of great violence
accompanied I'm various sections by
snow. slcet and hail. characterized the
storm. easily the most destructive of
the year and rarely equaled i'm the
~eNtcnt of It's sweep and damage Build
ings tOppled before the blow i'm nearly
n dozen states and death lay all along
In its wake.
The property loss was heavy along
the storms track. Resides dcmolish-
ing or unroohng buildings and telling
trees the high winds, rain. hail and
/Ieet did serious damage to early
rops. according To reports from
|Aorne Of the affected sections. Esti-
mates of damage to property from In
diam. and Michigan alone aggregated
S2.OOO.GO0. about evenly divided be-
tween the two States Early reports
OF losses ranging from s25,0OO to
100000. or more, from sections of
the slcrin region indicated that the
total would reach large figures.
! Wires fell In all directions before
Vthe blow. Not in many years has
there been such prOstration OF tele-
graph and telephone service. Chicago
Was cut OF for hours from commune
I. cation with points East. Only by de-
y1ous routes was connection finally es-
tailished. Last night conditions had
fpnr,xoyed materially. but IL will be
HVcraI days before service Is re-
kstored
Railroad traffic was seriously de-
laycd In many districts whore wire
communication was crippled ana
WaShOuts occurred.
The wind. which wiped out so much
property and cost so many lives. at
tanned record velocities at some points
Figures given by the weather bureau
In Washington showed that at Detroit
~ reached SIS miles an hour. new
Iaigh record In that city; 81 miles at
Toledo; IS miles am hour at Buffalo:
miles.
Cold weather H. trailing the de-
structivc blow. The storm seems to
have spent It's force and to be taking
the accustomed route of such disturb
anCcs cut the 81 Lawrence valley.