Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1919-03-17
LIGHT Plan
NORMAL TODAY
y,Ial i
Damage Done in Hurricane
Of Friday Night Suffic-
ientiy Repaired to
'I Use Plant.
QUICK REPAIR WORK
City Manager Long and His
Men Entitled to Much
Credit.
QUICK REPAIR WORK

The city electric light plant is today
, carrying it's normal load of both light
ing and power purposes in Webster
City, in addition to current being fur
nished to both Duncombe and WOOL
stock as usual tonight.
That this condition exists on the
third day folowling the hurricane Fri
day night, when all three smoke stacks,
each weighing five tons, were blown
down at the plant, the roof of which
was considerably damaged by the force
Of their fall, wires down, transformers
burned out by lightning, together with
more or less damage done to the inside
Of the plant itself, speaks volumes for
the efficiency of City Manager Long,
the twenty or more workmen engaged
in reconstruction Saturday and Sun
day and the quick service Of the Muir
ray Iron company of Davenport, who
shipped the new stack, which arrived
in the city yesterday in company with
their two best experts.
Damage Appraised.
Insurance appraisers estimate the
damage to the plant to be $500, $500
to the roof alone.
The twister which took down ;,.c
three stacks during Friday evenings
storm struck the plant at exactly 9:15
o'clock. The west stack was carried
across the roof, the second stack broke
off, the bottom section falling into the
boiler room below, narrowly missing the
two tiremen at work there; the east
ern most stack buckled over ut its base.
The engineer and fireman declare the
accident happened in an instant, but
bravely kept their heads and continued
to maintain the current until the pres
sure in the boilers was reduced.
Lights Out.
Lights in the downtown districts did
not go off for at least thirty minutes
after the stacks had fallen. However,
lightning hit two transfOrmers-One
on Elm street and another on Walnut
street-during the height Of the storm,
putting lights out in this section at an
EARLIER hour. These had not been re-
paired last night, leaving their Sec
tions Of the city the only part Of the
town in darkness.
Scaffolding enveloped one smoke
stack at the electric plant in prepara-
ton for it's replacing by new one,
ordered three weeks ago from the Da-
venport company and delayed in trans
It: However, this fortunately arrived
early Saturday morning and wOrklnen
( Immediately began putting it in place,
their efforts resulting in having one
boiler in working order in the late af-
ternoOn Saturday. The business sec
ton of the city and some private
homes, which happened to be on the
business circuit, We're lighted that ev-
enins.
The newly ordered stack with two
experts got here yesterday and the
ceaseless efforts Of the company enabled
current to be turned on in all sections
of the city last evening, with the ex-
(, ception of those parts affected by the
paralyzed transformers. The service
for tonight will assume normal proper
tions.
A report current on the street. plain
ly of a malicious character, stating that
the guy wires of the various stacks had
been cut previous to putting up the
scaffolding for the new stack, is. OF
course, untrue. The guy wires were es-
pecially reinforced to meet the addi-
tional strain if any should occur there
being four wives strung to the north,
four to the, south and two east and two
west. The tive-eighth steel rings for
these wires were broken off clean.
Normal Today.
Not only were the lights off Satur-
day, but power furnished factories,
I, printing establishments and other uses
Of electricity was dead, tying up many
businesses for the one day. However.
all resumed operations this morning
without additional delay.
City Manager Long was III commune
ration with the Murray Iron company
before IL o'clock the night of the storm.
He was ut the helm of reconstruction
every. moment thereafter and it Is due
solely to his efficient and ceaseless ef-
forts, together with those working with
him, that the damage so appalling AT
first sight is now. practically>a minor
Inconvenience passed and gone.