The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1926-07-22
HAIL AND WIND STORM
LEVELS GROWING CROPS
Breaks Many Hundreds of VIM
dOws, Smashes Through Roofs
Loss Estimated at $4,000

Striking first at or near the
hamlet of Bruceton, in Preston
county, West Va, about five
miles west of the Garrett county
boundary, a terrific wind and
hail storm, travelling eastward
across the central portion of the
county Sunday afternoon be-
tween five and six o'clock, left in
its wake over an area a mile and
half wide utter desolation and
complete destruction of growing
crops, timber and buildings, en-
failing a loss to Garrett county
farmers alone conservatively es-
timated at $4,000.
In its sweep across the country,
roofs on barns, homes and other build
ings were either swept entirely off or
so riddled by the hail stones that they
afforded no protection whatever
against the elements. The bark on
oak trees and other timber was so
terrifcally hammered by the hail that
great pieces were stripped off and
sent flying through the air. On the
west side of buildings marks of the
pelting hail were left which resemble
hammer marks and where composition
shingles were used in construction
the surface was Clipped off as though
done by Ratchet or axe In many
homes both in the country and in
towns not window pane was left
whole
The greatest damage to crops in
this county was in the community sur
roundings Hoyes and Accident and at
Bittinger.
At Hoyes many farmers stated on
Monday after they had inspected their
fields, that they would not have
sufficient grain or forage to win
ter their horses. This condition also
holds good in the Flatwoods and Ac-
cident sections of the county where
the grain and corn fields are barren.
The entire scope of country in the
region visited by the storm, which
was of about five minutes duration,
is desolate. While some farmers had
completed the harvest of their wheat,
others were just preparing to do so.
The unharvested wheat fields are
total loss insofar as the grain is
concerned, while the corn fields, from
which good crops were promised,
there remains nothing but a few
stalks, barren of blades, and cut down
to within few inches of the surface
of the earth. This condition is general
throughout the area visited.
In the town of Accident few homes
escaped damage. Here number of
roofs were cut to pieces by the hail
stones, several of which were meas
ured, the tape showing a circumfer-
ence of nine inches. They were not
round, as would be generally supposed
but resembled spawls of ice hacked
from blocks with keen edges and OBJ
long in shape. Nearly every window
on the western exposure of buildings
were broken. At the German Luth-
eran church the glass is practically all
out. The same condition exists at the
English Luthern church and parson-
age. In the high school building sew
enty-two panes in the windows on the
western front of the structure were
broken. Private homes in all parts of
the town suffered equally as much as
the buildings above enumerated.
Individual losses in crops cannot be
estimated. Some of those hardest hit
were John Haenftling, Blaine Will
burn, j. Arthur Dewitt, BENZ. Keller,
Walter Haenftling, in the Hoyes and
Flatwoods section. VIM. Frazee, of
near Hoyes, was also heavy loser.
Early in the winter he suffered frac-
ture of his hip and was confined to his
bed for several months. Just as he
had about recovered his barn, horses
and other live stock were destroyed by
fire. The storm of Sunday completely
ruined his growing crops and damag-
ed his dwelling so that it is well-nigh
uninhabitable until repairs can be
made.
Following the storm men were put
to work on damaged roofs and in re-
placing broken windows. Before noon
Monday all the stocks of various mer-
chants in Oakland in roofing and
glass were exhausted, so great was
the demand.
Automobiles caught on the road by
the storm were in many cases badly
damaged. One car, owned by King
wood (W. Va.) attorney, who was ov-
ertaken on the road near Accident,
had fourteen punctures in the roof,
lenses knocked from the lamps and
the windshield broken into bits. In
addition the hood and tenders of the
car were badly damaged.