The Washington times., 1921-09-11
WATER DAMAGE
. OF s15,0OO,0O0
IN SAN ANTON|A;
RELIEF STARTS
Hundreds of Houses Swept
Away-Many Persons Re-
|. ported as Missing.
BUSINESS AREA INUNDATED
Troops Establish "peadline" to
Prevent Looting Of Wrecked
F.. .i Stores. ."t
BY WEBB ARTz.
lnternatisnal News Service.

SAN ANTONIO. Sept. 10.-With
forty-one bodies recovered and with
scores Of persons missing as the
result Of the cloudburst and flood
which swept through seleping San
Antonio early today, the city was
settling down tonight to q full re-
alization Of the horror of the mad,
raging waters.
The narrow. shallow San Antonio
river. fed by . seyep,inch tan OF rain,
tore from its banks ana swirled
through the business sshd poorer resi-
Dental districts, causing sf5.coo.eso
damage. y
Light and Water Cat lOff.
Tonight the, city waa without elee-
tric light, without drinking. water.
without telephones. without sewerage
disposal. '"-. o. ..' i'.'.#
There was a hungry and homeless
horde, rescued in the dead, Of night.
without proper shelter. viz; - at
At sundown the military police cor
don thrown about the business dis
trict was widened and all spectators
barred-even those who lost relatives
and friends in the disaster and CROPPED
about the wreckage on the fringes Of
the scene Of death and destruction,
hoping and wondering.
An the. banking Institutions In the
flood area are under guard Of soldiers
tonight to prevent stealing.
The flood waters rose to q height
Of ten feet in thebusiness streets.
Mexican Quarter Hard Hit
The greatest loss of life occurred
in the Mexican district, in the west
ernp art OF the city. where the wa
ters swept through q district half a
mile wide and two miles long, Pill.
ing up frame houses and carrying
to death manyp ersons before they
were able to leavetheir beds.
1t is impossible even toestimate the
dead In that, district. The enrush-
ing waters swept through thee ity,
the San Antonio river rising over list
banks and bringing devastation to
thebusiness district. '.rsS.> ,.-
In the torrent of rain, wind, and
flood waters. five Of the bridges
crossing the river in the heart OF the
city were torn away, taking with
them trolley tracks, electric wires.
and sewer connections: ..aEE -
On Houston street. the main thor
oughfare. the water rose to height
Of ten feet: every store for q distance
Of five blocks being wiped out. The
water rose in lobby of the Gunther
Hotel, driving hundreds Of guests to
safety in the floors above. During
the height Of the storm tf,s> water
and electric service were put olf~cr
, commission by the inundation o~fthe
power plant. ~
Soldicrs Show Heroism.
The fact that the loss of life was
not greater is due to the heroic work
of soldiers rushed into the city short
iy before dawn. ... ,f g.
Enlisted men, rislking their own
lives in the attempts. src credited with
pulling more than 800 persons from
the rushing waters. s
The property loss in the business
district alone win run to tio.0oo,ooo or
moro, none. Of which Is covered by
insurance. G+,l
The business district late today pre-
scented more the picture OF devastat.
ed battle field than flood district ten
hours old. Oak desks. barber chairs.
mems shirts. hose. were piled high
here and there and covered with slime
and mud left In the wake Of the
waters. a ~
This city, which twenty-four hours
kso was one OF the garden spot a