Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1949-06-20
Floods
Continued From First Page)

three fourths of a mile width.
Water was licking at the floors
OF cabins on Great Seneca Creek,
a tributary, and several rowboats
were overturned at their moorings
With the water rising slowly.
chances Of damage appeared
slight.
Harbor police spent q busy
Sunday warning owners of some
1850 craft on the Potomac to
loosen moorings for riding out
safely the expected sharp rise.
With today's forecast calling for
warm and cloudy. there was no
threat of further rains in the i'm
mediate sector.
500 Families Homeless.
At Petersburg and Moorefield,
w. Va, which bore the brunt OF
the fash floods which sent the
South Branch of the Potomac
roaring out OF its banks Friday
night. Red Cross disaster units
were caring for 600 families whose
homes had been washed away or
damaged.
The Red Cross made a prelim-
mary allotment of 100000 for
relief of flood victims in the
Petersburg area and announced
more would be provided If needed.
With about go homes and 285
other buildings wrecked, the Red
Cross rehabilitation forces faced
a hard job in the days to come.
Property damage In this section,
and in the area Of Bridgewater,
Va, focal point of the other floods,
was expected to reach $4,000. 900.
Red Cross area headquarters at
Alexandria listed three more
flood victims not named in Sun
days death toll.
One was the 12-year-old son
of Corpl. A. M. Hurst Of the State
Police. whose body was found
earlier far from the foundation
of his home which was swept
away from near Petersburg.
Deaf Mute Is Victim.
Paul Meek. a brother-in-law,
also was In the Hurst home, but
struggled to high ground when
the water rushed in. He said
Corpl. Hurst was a capable swim
mer and might have escaped, but
refused to leave his son. who
could not swim. .ss
The other previously unlisted
victims were George Lefever and
Bill Jenkins, both Of near Peters
burg. Mr.. Jenkins was q deaf
mute who lived by himself.
Some Of the bodies Of those be-
lieved dead have not been recov-
cred. Among them were Nata
Walker. 10; Leota Redmond. Is.
and Winston v. Beckwith. 2. all
of whom were washed away when
a wall of water hit the car in
which they were riding near Pc
tersburg.
Mr.. and Mrs. John Gather,
who also were in the car. chung
to tree branches until rescuers
came. Mrs. Gather told Of hold
ing the 2-year-old boy for sew
erai hours until she lost her grip.
Girl Scout Counselors Rescued.
Five counselors trapped at the
District Girl Scout camp, May
Father, about 20 miles northwest
of Staunton. Va, were rescued
yesterday by National Guardsmen.
They were forced to wade from
the camps dining hall In chest
deep water to the highway and
then walk a mile to Stokesville.
Heavy damage to the camp will
prevent the scheduled opening
next Friday when ITO girls were
enrolled for the first two weeks.
The District Girl Scouts Execu-
tive Committee will meet this aft
ernoon to decide whether the
camp can be opened at all this
summer.
One entire unit Of the camp.
known as the Boone unit, consist
ing of eight cabins. a kitchen
shelter and recreation hall, was
swept away. The replacement
cost may be more than $4,000.
New Footbridges Destroyed.
Two footbridges, constructed
since last summer at $4,000. also
were destroyed. The item ap-
peared on the current operating
budget, and has not yet been paid.
While State troopers continued
an air patrol Of the Bridgewater
and the Petersburg Moorefield
areas, searching for the missing,
the immediate problems concerned
those of health and sustenance.
At Bridgewater, seven miles
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