New Britain herald., 1925-03-19
MANY INJURED DIE
 AS HOUSES BURN
Fi.2 Adds to Horror Of Tornado
 in Illinois
ly rha As.ocInted Presa.

Ill lllllIUlD
 Fly The Associated Press,
 Murphysboro. Ill., March 19.- Southern Illinois today presented a vast tableau of death and destruc. ton, ms its horror-strickcn inhabit- ants awaited more definite reports on the toll of lives taken by yestcr- days tornado, which swept clear across the central southern part of the state.
 With the stricken towns almost completely isolated. definite reports as to general loss of life were lack ing, but estimates placed the num- Der well above the one thousand mark, with many more injured. The amount of property damage also lacked definite figures, but was sev- eral million dollars.
 Sweeping across the Mississippi from the lower section of Missouri, the storm invaded Illinois at Cor ham, on the Mississippi and tore it's way in an almost straight easterly direction into Indiana, laying waste towns and farms over several hun dred square miles.
 Murphysboro, West Frankfort, Parish and De Soto, all situated in Illinois rich coal fields, appeared 10 have suffered the heaviest loss of lives and the biggest property damage. Smoke poured from the debris of Murphysboro's smouldering ruins, while its citizens searched for dead.
 Many Die In Flames
 Rescue work was greatly ham rered by the fire and it was said that many of the injured were cre- mated in the blazing debris.
 National guard troops have closed all roads to Murphysboro,
 The city at 5:30 a. un., today was burning in many places. The main business section was virtually wrecked and streets were filled with poles and debris and wrecked auto mobiles.
 Train loads of doctors and nurses, who arrived from all points, were taken to the basement of the Pres byterian church which was not de- stroyed.
 Bert Ecoby, an undertaken from Frankfort en route here, said two undertakers there had 60 or 70 bodies each.
 The whole northwest corner of West Frankfort is razed and condi- tions there are as bad as they are here" Ecoby said. Three school buildings were practically destroyed. The tornado scooped out the center Of the high school, turned houses end over end and devastated block after block.
 The wind carried automobiles great distances. It turned one house almost at right angle on its foun- dation," Ecoby added
 S5 Wrecked Automobiles
 An Associated Press correspond cnt made tour of the city at o'clock and counted S5 wrecked au- tomobiles. Fires still gIowed or fared with increasing fury and the streets were filled with homeless people.
 Food is scarce. What restaurants were not wrecked are trying to ob- tain food from Carbondale.
 De Soto was razed with the eX- ccption of a dozen houses, accord ing to B. W. Kryshcr, member Of the National Guard company of Car bondale. He reported that the schoolhouse there was demolished and estimated the dead children numbered from so to 100. He said that many other children were bad ly hurt.
 Other reports here and in Carbon dale strengthened early reports that casualties in the stricken area were great.
 Dynamite was used here late last night to stop the fires. Among the buildings razcd by the explosions was the Elks' clubhouse.
 TOa too .r.,, was yanked from its foundation and moved foHy feet without being de- molished.
 Royalton and Bloomfield two small mining towns, also were struck by the storm and at Royalton, sever al persons reported to have been killed and few injured. No casual ties, however, were reported from Bloomfield,
 At Parrish and West Frankfort the number of dead was estimated at 700, while the toll of human life in this city was believed to be around 15O. From lao 10 400 are said to have been killed in De Soto where most Of the victims were chiI- dren either buried under the ruins of their schoolhouse or trapped in the flames that burst out after the structure had tumbled into mass of twisted steel and crumhlcd brick.
 About one-third of West Frank fort a town of $500. was nearly wiped out by the wind.
 When West Frankfort had re- covered from it's panic, rescue work WAS started at once. The locaihos- pital was quickly filled. Physicians and nurses from nearby towns were
 .,. -..sue and u-orked long