Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-06-17
WASHOUTS DELAY
NEWS AND AID IN
TENNESSEE HILLS
Assistance Sent in Afoot to
Area Northeast of
EIizabethtOn

/ JOHNSON CITY, Tenn, June IA
Twelve known dead, four seriously
| injured, more than a dozen houses
| barns and mills demolished, 20 miles
| Of the Appalachian division OF the
Southern railway made impossible
| with parts washed away and thou
sands of acres of farm land ruined
constitute the toll of the most dis
astrous cloudburst ever recalled in
this section. 1t appeared to have
| its center near Hunter, Siam and
Gardens Bluff, and on Little Stony
creek and Blue Springs creek, where
a house in which were two families
went to pieces, taking nine lives.
The dead are: Mrs. Cecil Lewis
and five children, aged fourteen
ten, four and two yers, and four
| months; B. w. Smith, his wife anG
seven-year-old son, Willard, all Of
whom were in the Lewis home: q
| siX-yea4 old daughter G. Ellis
an unidentified sawmill hand. and A
B. Trick, Of Fish Springs, Tenn.
Four dwellings, a storehouse anC
a mill, with considerable live stock
| were washed away in the vicinity
| of Siam; four small houses at Fish
| Springs went with the tide.
Came Without Warning
The storm came without warning
last night and early today, and its
| fury was graphically told by Cecil
Lewis and his sons, Walter an,
| Charles, seven and eleven years OF
! age, who were brought to a hospital
at Johnson City, suffering from
| bruises and cuts, the younger boy
having his cheek cut open through
! into his mouth, in which condition
he remained in tree top three
hours waiting for the waters to re.
cede
Lewis stated that he was thrown
| from his house when wall of va
ter he estimated to be twelve feet
! high and filled with rock. earth and
trees struck the house. After be.
ing washed down the valley a shory
distance, he reached the bank and
made his way to a neighbours house
Edward Smith. AS he entered the
house it was struck by the tori ent
which turned the house completely
around.
Lewis was again thrown outside
but struck against a barbedWire
| fence and escaped. His two sons
Charles and Walter, escaped by
catching the branches of a tree. al
| most submerged. The young boy
grabbed the tree and pulled his
brother up, and there they remained
| until the waters receded. A neigh
Dor attracted by their cries came to
| their aid, and they were hurried to
i the hospital
Bodies Are Recovered
| The bodies of Mrs. Smith and he,
! son have been recovered, but none
of the bodies of the Lewis family
| have been found. One other body
has been located.
siX-year-old daughter of N. G.
Ellis was washed away while her
| father was attempting to rescue 9th
err members of his family from their
home. Her body was found later
with her dress caught against a
barbedwire fence.
An unidentified sawmill hand was
swept into the river No trace has
been found of his body or the body
of A. B. Trick, who was swept away
while attempting to walk from Fish
Springs to Butler.
All communication out of and east
of Hunter, six miles from Eliza beth
ton, and from Hampton, four miles
to the south. was cut off with the
| destruction of telephone lines
washing out of railroads. and de.
molishing of roadways
Information as to the extent OF
the storm was not received until
parties who walked a distance of
about twenty miles reached Eliza
bethton
Tracks Washed Away
The railroad tracks of the South
ern Railway, Appalachian division,
were washed out in seven places be-
tween Hunter and Gardens Bluff.
About four miles beyond that point
the tracks were deeply covered with
earth, boulders and trees: an embank-
ment between Fish Springs and But
Ter was washed out for a distance OF
200 feet, and several trestles were
made unsafe.
Houses destroyed in the Hunter
section include residences of P. f.
Smith, A. j. Oliver. u. P. Lewis,
James Lewis, Ellen Morton, Mrs. c.
w. Smith, and Y. Vaughan, Ed.
Smith, Bruce Smith and Cecil Lewis;
also mill of Alfred Bowers and four
small houses at Fish Springs"
All communication out of and east
of Hunter, six miles from Eliza beth
ton, and from Hampton, four miles
to the south, was cut off with the
destruction of telephone lines. wash
ing out of railroads and demolishing
of roadways.
Residents of Fish Springs, fleeing
from the storm, abandoned their
houses as the water arose. and first
took refuge on box cars. A number
gathered in a church, remaining
there the remainder of the night
The highways were strewn with
boulders, logs. trees and earth.
Waters of the Watauga are said
hour, forcing campers to higher
ground.
Power Lines Down
Power lines of the Watauga Power
company, whose plant is operated at
a fifty foot dam across the Watauga
near Siam were put out OF COM
mission Water which had been
flowing over the dam at a depth of
three inches. suddenly rose until
torrent five feet deep was sweeping
over the top, threatening the dyna-
mos and generators ut the foot of the
dam, and protected " a concrete
wall.