The sun., 1919-07-28
HAVOC WROUGHT BY
STORM WIDESPREAD
Lieut.. Virgins Killed at Port
Washington When Car
Hits Live Wire. !
4
MANY HOUSES SET AgIRE
Fallen Trees and Poles Halt
Motorists in Hudson Val :
ley Section.


The unusually vivid and prolonged
series of electrical storms that startled
the valley Of the Hudson. most of Long
Island and the upper part of Manhattan
and battered and deluged The Bronx
late on Saturday night and early yester-
day morning were not entered in the log
Of the Weather Bureau doing business
at the lower end of this island because
the thunderbolts were not playing. ex-
cept modestly, thereabout. and the rain
fall was not more than a firth OF an
inch. Reports of disaster other than
those published In late editions Of The
SUN yesterday came in from many
places that were cut of from comnuni-
cation by telegraph and telephone
through the arrangement OF wire SER
vice.
At Port Washington. L. l., Lieut..
George A Virgins, recently discharged
from the Marines. was killed when his
automobile came into contact with cleo
trio light feed wires torn down by tree
that had fallen after being shattered by
n bolt. Lieut.. Virgins was returning
from a dance at the Port Washington
Yacht Club to his home in New Hyde
Park Alan Dim of Port Washington
and Miss Margaret Hung OF Great Neck,
who had been at the dance, were ahead
of the Lieutenant. Dim brought his
car to a stop a few feet from the men,
acing wire. He and his companion got
out and sought shelter from the heavy
rain under trees and bushes along the
road.
Fails to Stop Car.
Presently the Virgins runabout APP
peared and Dim and Miss Hung shouted
warning to him. Apparently he did not
understand them as he kept on and tried
to drive through an opening under the
fallen trunk of the broken tree. The
runabout hit the wire and in the pyro-
technics that followed, the lieutenant
was seen to fall dead across the door OF
the car. Dim telephoned to Herbert J.
Matthews, foreman OF the Manhasset
Fire Department and DR.. Charles N.
Neisely, and they came with other volun-
teer firemen, cut down the wire and re-
leased the body of the Lieutenant, which
was badly burned. In assisting In the
cutting down of the wire DR.. Neisley'B
hands were burned. Lieut.. Virgins was
lifelong resident OF New Hyde Park.
The house Of George C. Cruise AZ
rs South Twenty-fourth street. Flush
ing, was struck by lightning at o'clock
yesterday morning and set aflre. Mr..
Cruise, who is a member OF the Broad
way Country Club. was at the club
house and was notified by telephone.
Edwin A Homer. president of the club,
made an effort to use his car to take
Cruise home. but could not start It.
They then decided to run. In Sanford
street tree struck by lightning crashed
almost at their foet and momentarily
halted their flight. The eight children
in the Cruise home were taken out be-
fore he arrived, and the fire was put
out after doing much damage.
Aviators Watch Hangers.
After a house belonging to Thornae
De Mott, near Camp Mills, Mineola, HAD
been struck by lightning and burned,
and the barn OF A. c. Patterson, with
fifty tons Of hay. at Hampstead. had
been destroyed, the military fire and
police departments at Camp Mills and
Hazelhurst Field and other aviation
grounds were called out and posted
around all the structures to be ready for
immediate action in case lightning
should hit any Of the hangers.
Fallen trees and telegraph and tele-
phone poles halted motorists on roads all
over the Hudson Valley section and In
parts OF Long Island. At Mount Beacon,
near Newburgh. Robert Maher. aged 10,
was killed by lightning.
At least one gang of burglars were
assisted in their work by the freque1It
sky explosions. At time when The
Bronx was being flooded and bombarded
simultaneously the silent partners Of
Vulcan & Co. tackled the saloon OF
Joseph Schrechoff. 793 East 180th street.
and blew the safe. Neighbors felt the
shock of the charge that smashed tho
safe door. but decided that 1t was just
another eccentricity of the storm
Schrechoff reported that the burglars
had got $500 in cash and $4,000 in LIB
erty bonds.
In Syracuse lightning hit the plant Of
Swift & Co.. in the heart of the packing
house district. early yesterday morning,
cutting It and causing 100000 damage.