Arizona republican., 1916-08-11
WEST VIRGINIA
 FLOODS CAUSE
 GREAT DANAGE

CHARLESTON. w. Va. Aus-
 t0.-Sixty- six persons are known
 to have lost their lives in the
 flood which swept three West
 Virginia mountain streams yester-
 day. rendering 10000 persons
 homeless and causing a property
 less estimated at s5,ooo. 900.
 Reports were still meagre to-
 and rail communication. but the
 authorities express the belief that
 the death toll might reach 100.
 The national Red Cross this
 afternoon offered aid to the flood
 sufferers but the local and state
 authorities replied that they be-
 lieVed the situation could be
 handled without outside assist ,
 ance. Two companies Of the Sec
 ond regiment, West Virginia ns-
 tionaI guards, are already in the
 flood district with tents and pro-
 visions.
 Reports tonight inaacated that the greatest loss of life was at Ferndale. where IS persons are known to be dead. The number dead at other villages and settlements follow F,skdale !: United !: Miami S Dawes ,. Dry Branch ,, Holly II; Giles B. oakley T. Leewood 1: Acme l. and Cherokee .. Many bodies are believed to have been washed down the streams towardthe Ohio river and probably never will be recovered.
 The excursion train carrying 800 Sunday school picnicers which was marocned between two creeks with washouts on either side. arrived at St. Ainans tonight after the passengers had spent z4 hours in the day coaches without food. On the Cabin creek branch of the Chesapeake and Ohio railroad another passenger train lies on its side with TO traeks near It. All the messengers escaped safely.
 Four hundred square miles were devastated by the flood. Eighteen miles of track on the Chesapeake anu Ohio railroad have practically been demolished. Every bridge has been swept away and the road bed for miles washed out
 Ono tunnel was washed full oi debris Railroad officials declare six ty days will be required to rebuild the main line to Cabin creek and much longer time to repair the branch lines.
 Cabin creek. whose flood waters tore through it's little mountain valley yesterday. today returned 10 it's mar row bed
 For sixteen miles from Banda where the creek empties into the l<anawha river. there stretched q scene of absolute desolation Men 1T charge of the many relief parties al ready at work feel that the number of dead will be considerably increased when the count is completed. A line man returning from q thirteen mil, | tramp through the devastated dis | tricts. reported forty dead along hi route.
 The flood came upon the vane, ] early Wednesday morning. w. A Smith. an insurance broker of Gin | cinnati, who vas in the district. de clared that the water rolled down tn narrow valley, foam crested, and iron his point of vantage on an engine a 1 Eskdale. where he and other hal | taken refuge. he saw the rourdhous | fill with ten feet of water in les than half an hour. while the floo stretched from hill to hill across tn valley
 Houses were swept from thei foundations ard women anG childre hurriedly leaving their homes were i some instances drowned before the could reach the hills
 The flood came in contact with tn carbide supply of a moving pictur theater at Eskdale and it explode, blowing the place to pieces Loade coal cars were damned one again. the other in indescribable confusion A street carnival company showin in De Soto lost all of it's equipment and animals.