Evening star., 1934-09-17
Total of 1850 Inches for
September Is 0.81 Less
Than 1923 Mark.
SUNSHINE WILL AVERT
FLOODING OF POTOMAC.
Two Boys Are Rescued From
Sunken Boat in Swollen Wa
ters of Beaver Dam Creek.

With a new all-time rainfall record
for single month almost at hand,
Washington is expected to enjoy at
least a two-day respite from the
almost continuous downpours which
have kept the city on the ragged
edge of floods for two weeks.
Yesterdays heavy rains. totaling
2.21 inches, brought the total for the
month to 1850 inches, only 81-hun-
dredthS of an inch less than the
all-time record of 14.41 inches, which
fell in August, 1928, to the accom-
paniment of disastrous floods.
Two days of promised sunshine
probably will avert any real food
ing on the part of the Potomac River.
it was said by the river and floods
division of the Weather Bureau. The
river is not expected to get out Of
its banks to any extent, although
some flooding of lower portions of
Potomac Park was reported this
morning.
Potomac Feet Above Normal.
Yesterday brought heavy rains
over the entire Potomac basin, and
the river is rising today. At Syca-
more Island, near Glen Echo, Md,
where the Weather Bureau main
tains level gauge, the river was 6
feet above normal this morning, about
Az feet above what is described as
"the usual high stage" The rise, due
to the upper river rains of yesterday,
is expected to continue for IL to Is
hours more. At the peak of the an
ticipated rise, however, the river will
be short of the dangerous" stage, the
river and flood division reported.
Harbor police reported the river
below Key Bridge "just about normal"
this morning and did not anticipate
any trouble during the afternoon high
tide.
Although the Potomac was rela-
lively low, many smaller streams
throughout its basin were swollen out
of their banks, flooding the fiat lands
in their vicinity, in some places to
dangerous degree.
A special dispatch to The Star
from Cheverly, Md, says that two
boys, playing they were on the Moro
Castle, narrowly escaped drowning
yesterday when their at-bottom boat
sank in the swollen waters of Beaver
Dam Creek. They were saved by
members of the Bladensburg Rescue
Squad who battled through 100 feet
of racing water, quicksand and mud
and carried the boys to safety.
Stood on Sunken Boat.
The boys. 11-year-old Donald Mans
field, son of Capt. Richard H. Mans
field, commanding No. 9 police pre-
cinct here, and 12-year-old Roy Stine,
jr., stood on their sunken boat for
a half-hour shouting for help be-
fore neighbors became aware of the
danger and summoned the rescue
squad, after attempts to get ropes
to the boys had failed.
The rain-soaked ground was unable
to absorb any of yesterdays heavy fall
and streets and low lands in the city
were quickly flooded at many points.
Traffic was blocked, trees went down
and electric cables short-circuited as
their conduits filled with water. The
District sewer division responded to a
number of calls for help in pumping
out flooded Easements.
Suburban roads at a number of
points were flooded. and at several
points District-bound traffic was de-
toured for long distances. The Lees
burg Pike was under water to a depth
of feet at Broad Run, IL miles east
of Leesburg, and 300 yards of the
Washington Herndon road disap-
peared under 2 feet of water. The
Washington-B Baltimore highway was
under foot of water at Bladensburg.