Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1921-02-19
30 KILLED. SCORE HURT BY BIG
STORM IN GEORGIA,


STORM IN GEORGIA.
Oconce, Ga, Feb. 10.--A tornado
that struck the Gardner settlement,
one mile from here shortly after the
noon hour today brought death to two
"ht.c persons and nearly thirty color
Cd and serious injury to five white
persons and more than 4 score OF col
OrCu ones.
A stretch Of land extending from
Oconec almost to Tuombsboro i'm Wash
!hgton County, nearly five miles long
and about Il half milo wide is us bar
rem MS II prairie tonight: not a huiJd
ing nor n treo being left standing.
Among the dead is Benjamin Frank
lin Orr. IA year old youth who was
dccaPtated. His head had not been
| found ut Il late hour tonight.
Ihc onlyothcr white person who
met death in the tornado is the three
year old daughter OF e. l.. Minor,
| mannGter Of Shcnhcrd's Commissary
at tho plant of the cleveland Oconeo
lumber company.
Eighty-two children and three
teachers We're in school building OH
when the tornado struck. The build
ing was literally twisted to pieces,
and the fragments scattered for miles
around. Children were picked up by
the wind and carried for some dis.
aances but IL is officially announced
tonight that only one child was seri
ously bruised.
White persons injured included L.
l.. Thompltins, G. o. 'ihompl2ins, Ed
gar Thompkins, George Lord and EN-
cry Shepherd, Marion Hodges, Mrs.
Harrison mother Of j. NJ. Harrison;
Tolbcrt Ennis. Emma Jolly. The Jol
ly girl was hurt at the schooihousc.
ApproMimat ely forty houses were
blown down in the Gardner settle
mcnt. The Shepherd Brothers Com
misary at the big lumber plant was
reduced 10 kindlng wood. Orr and
four colored persons meeting death
there. Ten feet away from the com
miSSary was the general Office of the
Cleveland. OcOncc Lumber company
which was untouched by the storm.
The Fifteen acne plant of the lum
bcr company, which practically owns
tho settlement site OF Gardner was
not seriously damaged by the wind.
although millions of feet OF lumber
piled in the yards was scattered.
The tornado spent its force locally
Immediately beyond the plant OF the
lumber company in tho settlement Of
forty houses and four stores Most
Of the people residing IN this section
were coiored. the white people Of the
town living OH higher ground,a short
distance away.
These colorcd houses and stores
faced the tracks of the Savannah di-
vision of the Central Of Georgia Rail
road. In the rear Of the houses was
IN open field extending for nearly a
nile from the Oconce Station to the
lumber mill. IT was into this field
that men. women and children were
carried to their death from their sents
1T dinner tables.
Ten minutes after the tornado
wiped out the Gardner settlement /
Central OF Georgia rocal freight train
running from Savannah to Macon ar
rived on the sc"n" w. q. King Of
Wadley, conductor in charge viewed
the bodies scattered about tho ground
The conductor ordered his locomo-
i've detached from The train and
with his crew FASTENED to Tennillc
eleven miles away for aid Coaches
were commandment from the Wrights
vile and Tennillc Railroad and four
doctors and forty.siX persons were
obtained in the relief party The train
returned, to Oconee as speedily as
possible.
Doctors found one colored hoy with
board driven into his forehead.
They removed the board and gave
temporary aid. The youth was alive
tonight ard 1t is believed he will live.
The body Of three year old colored
infant was found Mt the roots Of q
tree, the top Of which had been twist
ed off. The chilh's head had been
crushed in, having beeA CARRIED head
foremost against the tree. One color
cd persons body was cut in two.
A colored man and his wife were
found more than 100 veards from
their home lying SHE by side in the
road Both dead.
The bodies Of several small color
ed people were found in trees ont of
the path Of tho tornado being sus.
pended on the limbs by their clothing.
The bodies OF grown people were
thrown into the field in semicircle
and In the center OF the group was a
goat, which stood like q statute, too
frightened to move for hours after
tho storm passed.