Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-05-12
HEAVY HAIL STORM
VISITS 0TTUMNA
FIRST SEVERE WEATHER OF
THIS YEAR IS EXPERIENCED
RY RESIDENTS.
WIND is STRONG
Damage Is Done to
Fruit and Small Garden Truck
in City and Surrounding
Country.

! in City and Surrounding
! Country.
| Ottumwa and vicinity was visited
by severe rain, hail and wind storm
early this morning and considerable
| damage was done in various parts o
I the city and the surrounding country
| The storm came after an unusually no
and sultry day and was accompanied
! by a great deal of vivid lightning
and heavy crashes of thunder. The
principal part Of the damage was con
fined to the breaking Of tree branches
blighting of fruit tree buds and the dc
struction of small garden truck. the
first wind and rain storm with the
severe thunder and lightning came
| lust after midnight. The second event
of the night came between and
{ O'Clock this morning and was featured
principally by the huge hailstones
which came down with great force FOL
about ten or fifteen minutes and the
almost constant vivid flashes of light
ning. were accompanied by dull roar
ing of the wind and thunder. The
Unusually Warm Day.
The day which preceded the storm
was an unusually warm one. the an
was heavy and sultry Sunday and this
increased toward evening. At seven
O'Clock in the morning the thermom.
eter registered IS, by two It, mad
climbed to IS and at nine it dropped
only five degrees. About ten O'CLOCK
the sky became clouded and bright
flashes of lightning were thrown inter.
mittently over all parts Of the sky but
more especially in the north and
northwest. This increased until mid
night when the storm broke. After
about half an hour of heavy wind and
severe thunder and lightning accom-
panied by a heavy rain this storm
ceased only to be followed by another
and more severe one in about two
hours, This second one was not so
long in duration as the first but more
severe and more destructive. Hail
stones are said to have fallen as
large as hen eggs and the reports from
all parts of the city and the surround
| ing country say they were like wal
nuts. They kept up constant pom
bardment for about fifteen mnutes,
All of this time the sky was lgnteo
by practically continuous fiasnes
i OF vivid lightning which gave the
whole thing lurid greenish hue: the
| wind and the hail together produced
| a distant dull roaring which led some
people to believe that storm OF
cyclonic dimensions was upon them.
More Damage In North.
The northern parts of the city and
the country lying in that direction
from Ottumwa report more damage
than that in the other directions al
though the storm seems to have been
pretty general all over. In the coun.
try northeast of the city toward
Dahlonega considerable damage has
been reported as to the fruit trees.
The cherries were. just beginning to
form and the heavy hail being pelted
against them stripped many OF the
trees. Small garden stuff is reported
to have been badly damaged by the
hail and the heavy wind, In all parts,
but more especially in the northern
and northwestern districts. Branches
! of trees were broken and strewn over
the lawns and streets, and the yards
in many parts Of the city this morn
ing presented an appearance similar
to autumn, the fresh green grass be.
ing covered with the leaves which mad
been stripped from the trees. Con
siderable trouble has been experienced
today by the telephone companies
I, with their lines, both in the city and
also with those for toll connections.
Most of the calls in Ottumwa have
been due to the branches Of trees hav'
ing fallen on the wire and broken them
from the poles, while in other places
the connections have been burned out
BY the lightning. The telephone line
men report their trouble as being gen
eral, no one part Of the city being
affected more than another. The
greenhouses also report some trouble
Only a few panes Of glass were broken
at the Kranz and Criley's houses but
A. e. Parks on North Elm street had
$50 small glasses in his house smashed
by the heavy hail and Mr.. Parks also
had considerable damage done tc
young tomato plants.
Cyclone Hits Davenport
Davenport, May IA cyclone which
; passed over this vicinity at $3.50 this
morning tore the roof off and blew II
the side Of the Davenport mattress fac
tory doing damage to the extent O.
! s., 900. Part of the roof of the kala
mazoo Corset Co. factory was blown OF
and damage was done by water t
machinery and stock, amounting tt
several thousand dollars.
one, she said, and can earn mans
wages. We can remain chums as WI
are now, and my larger wages viii