Evening star., 1938-09-29
6 DIE, $40 HURT
ASQU|CK TORNADO.
HITS CHARLESTON
Sudden Storm, Lasting Only
a Minute, Wreaks Wide
Property Damage.
HOSPITAL SENDS OUT
CALL FOR ALL DOCTORS
Many Of City's History STEPPED
Structures Are Left
in Ruins.
Sy the Associated Press.

CHARLESTON, s. c., Sept. "a
tornado hit historic Charleston witt,
sudden and vicious fury at about 8
am. today, killed at least as persons
and injured at least $40 more in q
welter of wreckage that was spotted
throughout the city.
Thirty city blocks were damaged and
100 houses blown down.
The sudden storm, of not more than
. minutes duration in any one place
was preceded by q torrential down.
pour.
OF the % reported killed, is were
colored. The dead were not immedi-
ately identified except these four white
persons: Mrs. Ruth Mehrtens, 26;
Irwin H. Mehrtens, 3; Miriam Zeigler
IA, and Floyd Singletary, 9. all of Is
Market street. They were killed when
their house collapsed in the twinkling
Of an eye.
An emergency call was sent out
from Roper Hospital, Charleston's
largest, for all physicians to report
there Immediately, as the injured were
being brought there by every available
conveyance.
Fine Old Buildings Ruined.
Many Of the city's history-steeped
buildings were in ruins. st. Michael's
Episcopal Church, erected long before
the Revolutionary War, was consid-
erably damaged as well as the old
market place.
A colored Baptist church in the
heart of the city was demolished, but
!: was unoccupied at the time.
The roof of the city hall was blown
away, and the Timrod Inn, a small
hotel, in the same vicinity, was badly
damaged.
Charleston's beautiful Battery, a
mecca for tourists, was stripped of
many fine old trees and debris Uttered
tts park.
In every direction, rs far as the eye
could see, there was vision of un-
rooted buildings and other wreckage.
Came With Suddenness.
Manning ;. Rubin, city editor of the
Charleston Evening Post, in the vicin-
tty Of which on Meeting street the
tornado did much damage, said he was
''dazed by the sudden fury with which
the storm struck.
Il was on my way to work and had
just parked my car in q torrential
downpour, he said when I heard an
almost deafening roar. I did not see
any buildings collapse. 1t did not
last more than 30 seconds or q minute
at the most in the neighborhood ]
was in.
LAS soon as got to the Office, a
stones throw away, saw that all the
electric power was off, Looking from
the window, noticed the roof Of the
Timrod Inn had disappeared. As far
SIS we could see from the windows OF
the Office, Charleston presented pic
ture Of wrecked buildings and uprooted
trees.
THE storm apparently dipped into
ell parts of the city, with toll Of
wreckage everywhere II touched"
J. e. Lockwood, United States me-
teorologist, said he believed two tor
nadoes struck the city a few minutes
apart.
The first apparently roared in from
the west across the Ashley Rive,
Bridge; he said. 1t did not approach
the Weather Bureau near enough fol
the instruments to record it.
The second came in from the south
UASf q fau y,aiyy,foc 1ofn "a, ,ob
the Battery, southern tip of Charleston
A wind velocity of 72'miles an hour
just 3 miles less than hurricane force
was recorded for this blow, Mr.. Lock
wood said.
On South Battery street fine old Co.
lonial homes, many of them bought
by wealthy Northerners in recent
years, were badly battered.
President Orders Help.
President Roosevelt ordered the
Army. Navy and the Works Progress
Administration today to render aid in
Charleston. He acted in response to q
telephone request from 1t. Gov. j. E.
Harley of South Carolina, who advised
the Chief Executive there was con-
siderable property damage and loss ot
life"
The South Carolina Governor, Mr.
Harley said, is in Oklahoma and can.
not be reached, and the Legislature Is
not in session to take any action.
Omcers of South Carolina National
Guard units reported the situation had
gone beyond their control, Mr.. Early