Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1921-07-14
PLAINS DIGGING
ITSELF OUT OF
STORM DEBRIS
Near Twister Hits Town
Doing Widespread
Damage

Inc Town OF IdtHS IS SIlll DuSy
today, and will continue busy for
several days, attempting to bring or
der out of the chaos Feought by a
terrific wind, rain and hail storm,
taking on much of the nature of a
twisting tornado, which struck the
town about a o'clock Tuesday after
noon, doing much damage to prop
cry of many kinds and filling the
streets with a tangle Of trees, poles
and wires, as we'll as other debris.
Telephone communication with
! Plains from Americas. was still inter-
rupted today, the damage both to toll
! lines and local exchange not having
| been repaired. The news Of the ex-
| tent of the storm did not begin
reaching the Times-Recorder,
brought in by persons who came
by auto from the peighborinS city,
until shortly after Wednesday, edi-
tons had gone to press and II con-
tinued to come today. I
! The storm struck somewhera be-
tween ths-bome of Jack Slappey aust
to Tie uoftheast of the town ahd;
sweeping throaeh the town proper,
continued in a Southwesterly direc-
ton through OldWBotsford, across
| Kinchafoonce crock and into the Vi
sjnity of the intersection of Sumter,
/ TcrreU and Webster counties, swerv-
iag there and 8Weeping to the farm
! ofWJack GosaWa mile to the east
ward. MNiIhc storm was accompanied
by heavy hail for stretch about
half a mile which stripped crops OF
all kinds.
Light Plant Unroofed.
The Plains electric light and pump
j ing station, a steam plant recently
erected by a bond issue, was unroot-
ed and the walls demolished, putting
the plant out of commission for a
time. The Montgomery cotton ware
house was unroofcd and partially
blown in. Houses were damaged,
and flooded and havoc generally pro
duced. A remarkable feature was
that in Plains, despite the deaVy
damage, not a person was injured.
A party of Americu8 people, m
cluding Mrs. w. 7. Lane, were call
! ing that afternoon at the home OF
Mrs. Randolph Logan in Plains. So
severe was the storm that they were
unable to return until Wednesday.
Mrs. Lane told of the extent
of the storm damage as she had OBJ
served it, reciting the following de-
tails of which she learned before
leaving there:
Thirteen chimneys were hlown
down and nearly every home IN
Plains damaged by the water which
/ fell in torrents for forty-five minutes.
The city power house, nearly new,
was struck by the full force Of the
! storm, the building unroofed and the
machinery being almost submerged
/ bv the water. The plant was put
out of commission during That night
and the next day, the city beng IN
darkness and lamps and candles be
! ing brought into service in the stores
and homes.
Warehouse Damaged
The roof of the Montgomery cotton
warehouse was completely corn off,
with one end of the building blown
| in, and considerable damage done by
the rain to the cotton stored IN the
warehouse.
The home of Jack Dorsey, situated
about two miles from Plains, was
badly damaged and his two children
painfully but not seriously hurt. Two
mules standing in the barn were
struck by flying timbers and then
legs broken so thay had to be klllec
Wednesday morning.
The handsome large stained ar'
glass window in the front of the Bap
tist church in Plains was hftee
from it's casing and blown about 81
/ feet, it being undamaged except fo
small corner Clipped from th'
glass.
Trees were twisted from thei
roots and hurled TO the ground, SOM
of them lying across the road afte
the storm had passed and preventing
the passage Of vehicles. Telegraph
telephones and electric light pole
were broken off or split in numbe
of cases, with half lying on one sid
and the other falling opposite.
Mattresses Soaked
Almost every residence in the, tow
sustained such damage by water a
to render the occupants unable t.
use their beds during the night, near
ly everyone ia town remaining VI
= all night Wednesday morning near
ly every mattress in the town wa
carried outside into the sunshine t.
= dry.
A chicken coop was blown from
from the yard of one neighbor int
that of another with no damage to tn
+ two chickens therein
A washtub, which was bottom u
in one yard, as blown fifty feet dis
tant and seen shortly after, righ
side up, nearly full of ater.
All about the vicinity of Plain
the hail fell with such force that tn
cotton, corn and other crops wer
stripped in the fields, many of tn
cotton stalks standing leafless.
The rain fell with such force tha
J it appeared like white sheets as tn
Continued on Page 81