The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1922-06-13
DEATH LIST OF
STORM GROWS

New York, June IL (By the Asso-
ciated Press).-Morgues and under
taking shops of the metropolitan area
tonight held the bodies of more than
three score men, women and children
victims of yesterdays brief cy-
clonic thunderstorm.
Marine police, who continued
throughout the day their work Of
graphing in Pelham bay and Long
Island sound off City island, where
the greatest toll was taken among
Sunday canoeists and fishermen, pre-
dicted they would find at least a score
more victims-enough to push the
death toll past 80. Eye witnesses of
the swift tragedy placed the number
even higher.
At least $50 canoes, row boats and
small motor boats were bobbing
about off the island, witnesses said.
when the storm came screaming down
on the resort, at velocity of 80 miles
an hour, or more. Occupants of the
little craft, sensing their danger,
made run for shelter, but scarcely
had they got under way when they
were engulfed in binding storm of
rain and hail.
AS quickly as it had come, the
storm vanished 1t had lasted less
than five minutes. But scarcely
dozen of the $50 small craft had sur
vived. Horror stricken, but helpless
to aid the crowds on the beach and
about the casino pier saw scores of
men and women clingirg to wrecked
and overturned craft in the choppy
sound and bay. One by one, they
gave up the struggle and dropped
quietly off to be carried out toward
the open by the tide.
Some of the bodies, the police say,
probably never will be recovered. The
tide, turning, brought more than a
score of them back today. Eye wit
nesses estimated there were between
500 and $50 persons in the wrecked
crafts. Heroic work by the United
States life guard members of nearby
yacht clubs and volunteers from the
shore crowd saved hundreds.
Among the first to put out were
Jack Murray, j. G. Bower, Jack NAL
10y and Frank Warttinger.. Manning
two small boats, they saved more
than a dozen men and women whom
they found cfinging :: to- overturned
canoes and row boats. They were
followed by others, and soon more
than SO craft of all sorts were out.
dragging to safety the survivors of
the disaster. A score or more saved
themselves by clinging to the sides
of Cornelius Vanderbilt's schooner
yacht. The waters had been cleared
by nightfall of the living but the
search for the dead continued through
the night. Guided by the searchlight
of the police boat John F. Hylan, a
score of boats cruised about, graphing
for, and occasionally finding bodies.
Meantime chaos reigned on shore,
where darkness descended unbroken
by the usual glare of electric lights.
The island power plant had been put
out of commission by the storm as
had telephone and telegraph lines.
Mothers, fathers and wives of the
missing besieged the police station
where temporary morgue had been
set up--gazing fearfully at the faces
of the dead by the fiickering light of
candle and lanterns. Others crowd
ed the wreck beach waiting
for the rescue boats to come IN with
more bodies.
Fresh crowds hurried to the island
today, when they had the news of the
tragedy through the morning news
papers. Police directed them 10 the
Bronx morgue where the %4 bodies
so far recovered had been removed.
The City island calamity, while the
greatest was not the only havoc
wrought by the storm.
Pending investigation, a charge of
homicide was lodged against Paul 81
mon. owner of the IS foot ferris
wheel at Clanson Point park, in the
Bronx, which was blown from its
base and hurled it's 60 occupants on
the beach of Long Island sound in Il
| tangle of steel wreckage. Seven were
killed and 81 injured