The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-12-31
TODAY's TEMPERATURES.

~ o CLOCK. IL z Q CLOCK. III
Up to 1 o'clock today snowfall in
Topeka had amounted to sos inches.
This Is equivalent to a rain of .22 of
an inch.
The temperature for the day aver
aged IL degrees below normal. At 2
O'Clock this afternoon the wind was
blowing 15 miles an hour from the
north.
A surprise attack was opened short
ly after daybreak this morning in To-
peka by the storm scheduled by s. d.
Flora, state meteorologist, to reach
, here either shortly before or during
Tuesday night. The first salvo was
merely desultory range-findng, but
within short time the wind gathered
velocity and the snow increased in
density and violence until it became
nearly equal in its rigor to the storm
attack laid down a week ago.
The cold wave arrived aheard of its
schedule and opened Immediately
with the snow. Flora makes no pre-
dictions as to how much snow may be
expected. The cold wave fomenting
in the northwest broke several hours
ago with Williston, N. D., topping the
country with a temperature of 80 de-
grees below zero, while South Dakota
reported a low temperature of below
and Washington below. The wind
backed around in the right direction
and mixed the storm east. At o'clock
this morning, altho moving out smart
ly, it had failed to reach the Mississip-
pi river district. Flora says it will
reach there by tonight. 1t will strike
the middle west in heaviest order
some time this afternoon or tonight.
so the morning preparatory blow will
be followed up with something heavier
within the next twenty-four hours.
There were no weather bureau reports
from northwest Kansas this morning,
but the temperature must be around
zero, says Flora.
Isolation Is Threatened.
The entire state today was locked in
the grip of a blizzard of snow, hail
and rain. Many towns are already
isolated because of Interrupted COM
n-unlcat1on by wire and rail, and
scores more are facing the same pros
poets providing the storm continues.
In western Kansas trains on the
California and Colorado lines of the
Santa Fe and the Colorado and Ell
Paso lines of the l;ock Island are
Diocked. Topeka offices Of the Union
Pacific had as yet received no word
OF trains on that line being blocked,
but all trains are several hours late
At the best these trains are battling
painfully with drifts and driving snow
Conditions in the western part of
the state are undoubtedly much worse
than during last weeks storm when
trains on all three of the trunk lines
that pass thru Kansas from the east
and west were blocked for hours
some of them for days. The Santa Fe
officers early this morning reported
flash of snow trouble on its Colo
rado and California lines. Train No.
3, westbound, is blocked at Sutton, a
little station about rs miles west of
Dodge City. Trains Nos. 10, 6, and
are being held at Syracuse. In the
meantime operating officials learned
that about three inches of snow, on
the level had drifted in great heaps
across the tracks.
Rock Island Trains Blocked.
On the Rock Islands Colorado line.
Train No. 2S, due in Topeka at $3.50
o clock this morning, is blocked at
Colby. The Ell Paso line. upon which
the most trouble was experienced last
week, is blocked also. with train No.
stalled at Stratford, Tex, and other
trains somewhere behind it. U. p
train No. 102. due in Topeka this
morning at S:20 O'Clock, is five hours
late so far. No. 104, due at 3 o'clock
this afternoon, is six hours late, the
probability being that it will arrive
sometime tomorrow if it arrives at all.
The extent of the entire snowfall in
western Kansas has been estimated at
from three to six inches, the drifts fill.
ing railroad cuts, roads and valleys
Freight service has been practically
discontinued. all available locomotives
having been pressed into work-train
service on both main and branch lines.
On some of the latter the trains have
been annulled.
Topeka. itself, Is today wrapped in
la grey-white shroud that is almost
impenetrable with the vision Short
ly after 8 o'clock street car schedules
began to show effects of the storm
and began to become disorganized
Snow sweepers were placed in service,
but this did little good. All lines re-
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