The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1918-05-03
EARTHQUAKE HITS
CALIFORNIA TOWNS
PANIC REIGNS IN SEVERAL
PLACES WHILE TEMBLoRs
LAST-oNE LIFE LOST.
DAMAGE TOTALS MILLIONS
Numerous Building Walls Cracked and
Several CoIIapse.-Hundreds of
Windows Broken and Cor
nices Shaken Down.

Los Angeles, April pa general
earthquake shock felt throughout CAL
ifornia at 3 80 o'clock Sunday after
noon took nellife at nearby resort,
caused the serious injury of one wom-
an in a mad rush from downtown
theater, broke large plate glass, win
dows, shook down cOrniceS and cut
| off communication with at least two
small towns, whence came unverified
reports of serious property damage
and possible loss of life.
Hemet, about % miles east and south
of Riverside, and San Jacinto, the next
town north of Hemet on a branch of
the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fee rail
road, were reported practically. de-
stroyed. 1t was reported in San Ber-
nardino yesterday that both telephone
companies said they were unable to
get any respone from that or nearby
sections.
At San Bernardino the shock was
said by old residents to be the most
severe in many years, scores of plate
glass windows were broken, hundred
feet of brick wall from one low build
ing fell into the street, and cracks
developed in several other walls. There
was panic at the ball grounds, where
game was in progress. and one man
was hurt in the rush to escape. An
other, running out of a theater into
the street, was run down by an au-
tomobile and seriously injured.
Riverside suffered shock of similar
intensity. Ornaments were shaken from
the court house cornice and windows
were broken.
At Banning the front of the Odd Eel
lows building fell out, striking two
automobiles which had just been va
Gated by their passengers.
The tremor was first reported from
Barstow, at 3 80 and apparently NOV
ed east and south from that point,
becoming the most severe in the Hem
ct and San Jacinto section and further
north about San Bernardino.
Coming out toward the coast, the
tremor did slight damage at Whittier
and other intervening points, and then
struck Los Angeles ut 8 80 p. m, two
shocks being recorded. Their dura-
ton was estimated at 10 seconds and
30 seconds respectively.
Woman Injured.
In the city, the earthquake broke
number of large plate glass windows
in office buildings. There was almost
a panic in theaters and picture shows,
and one woman. Mrs. A. Jacoby, was
struck on the head by an iron fire
escape, lowered from above, as she,
stepped from a theater side entrance.
The city hall stands two inches from
an adjacent building. The trenor
brought them together and crushed off
brick and stone dust. There was
panic among the prisoners in the city
jail when glass crashed from the up
per windows Brick fell from the cor
nice to the street.
Thrown From Pier.
At Santa Monica a crowd was on
The municipal pier, which swayed per-
lousy, and in the rush to escape,
Frank r. Darnell, retired manufac-
-urer of Los Angeles, was thrown off
the pier and drowned.
canyon was also the scene of panic
when the building swayed and creaked.
Feminine patrons emerged entirely I'M
clothed and there was a mad scramble
first to get away from the dressing
looms and then to get back.
Several hundred pleasure seekers on
he Redondo pier made rush for land
when the pier began to sway and sew
eral were slightly hurt in the resulting
rush.
Long Beach Hit.
At Long Beach several large office
were severely shaken and
numerous windows were broken. There
we're several small panics in public
Meeting places but it was reported that
10 one had been seriously hurt.