Evening star., 1917-09-16
LIVES LOST, CROPS
HIT BY DOWNP0UR
Eastern North Carolina Loss
$4,000 to $4,000 by
Flood and Tempest.
THREE DEATHS REPORTED

| By the Associated Press.
RALEIGH. N. c.. September 15.-What
| is believed to be the severest rainfall
| in twenty-five years in eastern North
| Carolina caused last night and today
| an overflow of rivers and streams that
already has taken toll of three lives
| and caused property and crop damage
lvariously estimated at from fifty thou
Sand to one hundred and fifty thousand
| dollars.
| Between Goldsboro and La Grange
an aged negro and his wife were
drowned in their cabin, which was
partially submerged by the overflow
ing of a stream. Edmond Frizzele, a
white man, was drowned while trying
| to ford a swollen creek near ktnsten.
Between Clinton and Warsaw the en-
| gineer at pumping station of the
Atlantic Coast Line was caught by a.
| wall of water in Six Runs creek and
escaped probable drowning by climb
| ing a tree, to which he was clinging at
late hour tonight. Parties have gone
| from Clinton t. his rescue.
With several treStles and lengths of
track washed away between Clinton and
Warsaw, the former town is cut off from
railroad transportation until Monday or
| later.
owing to uncertain conditions of track
| age between Washington and Norfolk, the
! Norfolk k-Southern annulled tonight's train
between those places
| At Goldsboro. where the rainfall was
IL
all OF Friday night and part of Satur-
day. The rain started again tonight and
with the water in Neuse river rising at
the rate of foot an hour further DANA ge
and possibly more loss of life is ex-
pected. The principal damage in Colds
boro so far. however, has resulted from
| overflow Of what is known as the 'big
ditch" stream flowing through the sec
| ton of the town inhabited by negroes.
Many of the houses in that part of the
town have been flooded to a depth of
from three to six feet.
Considerable damage has been done to
crops. and innumerable bridges along the
country roads have been swept away.
Wrecking Train Blocked.
WILMINGTON. n. c.. September 10
No loss of life is reported in this sec
ton as a result of the torrential rain
fall during last night. when total of
442 inches fell and the gale attained
velocity Of thirty-six miles an hour. but
there is long record of damage rang
ing from smashed glass to scores of
washouts on country roads and several
on the railroads leading out of the city.
The Atlantic Coast Line freight train
this morning at 2:30 o'clock was
wrecked at a washout near Rose Hill.
on the road to Goldsboro, y. c.. and
second washout near Faison prevented
4 wrecking train reaching the scene. SO
that the Wilmington -C;o1dsboro branch
has been blocked all day.
Other washouts are reported on the
Atlantic and Yadkin railroad. trains
being detoured via Elrod and Chad
bourn to Sanford, N. c. All trains have
been delayed.
Storm tides at wriehtsville beach
were six feet higher than normal, but
no damage of consequence was re-
ported.
KINGSTON, N c.. September 15.-
The loss of at least one life and dam
age to property aggregating many
thousand dollars We're the results In
this Immediate section of floods today
following last nights downpour.
Scores of bridges are down and many
roads are impassa BILE Not a bridge is
standing in rural Lenoir county. At
a number of points dams have broken
and at least one building was washed
away Edmund Frizzeile, an aged man
of Glenfield. was drowned while at
tempting to ford a swollen stream at
Wheat swamp.
Reports from Greene county say
number of mills are threatened there.
County's Greatest Rainfall.
GOLDSBORO, n. c., September 10
AS result of the greatest rainfall in
the history of Goldsboro and Wayne
county the negro tenement house sec
tion of this city was flooded this morn
ing by three feet of water and two
bridges, one of concrete, were washed
away when a stream. known as the
Big ditch" which passes through the
lower end of the city. flooded its banks.
The rain, which started at o'clock
yesterday afternoon. ceased at , O'Clock
this morning, and the water is now
rapidly receding. The damage to prop
erty and crops will amount to thou
sands of dollars.
Reports from the county that the
crops have been badly damaged. if not
totally destroyed. in some sections.
Dams of several large mill ponds are
reported broken and bridges over many
small streams throughout the county
are reported to have been washed
away. Street railway and other traf-
flc is demoralized.
Many people had narrow escapes and
were forced to leave their homes early
this morning in their night clothes In
the eastern part Of the city men are
said to have carried their wives and
children to safety in water up to their
knees.