Richmond Palladium (Daily), Volume 42, Number 102, 12 March 1917 — Page 1

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RICHMOND, IND., MONDAY MORNING, MARCH 12, 1917.

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Four Persons or More Killed in Ruins South of Hagerstown Sunday

TORNADO CUTS SWATH ISO YARDS WIDE; CHILDREN CAUGHT UNDER THEIR HOME; HAGERSTOWN SAVED DY THE GEISLER HILL HAGERSTOWN, Ind March 12 Four lives are the toll of the tornado which cut a path 150 yards wide just south of the town, shortly after 3 o'clock yesterday. Two small children of Ernest Gray, aged 2 and 5 years, were killed, being battered, bruised and mutilated by the timbers of their house in which they were caught. Two farm hands, unidentified, are reported dead on the Clint IVIillikin farm, 7 miles west of town. In addition to the Gray children who were killed, two others with the housekeeper, Mrs. Cross, were in the house at the time it was struck by the cyclone. . Mr. Gray, whose wife died only six months ago, was in Hagerstown just outside the path 6f the storm, where, helpless to rescue his loved ones, he was compelled to watch the tornado swoop down upon his home. Mrs. Cross and the other children, seriously injured, almost beyond hope of recovery, were taken to the home of relatives near Economy. John Stout from his home, 200 yards outside the path of the storm, watched the demolition f Gray's residence and hurried to the scene as soon as the tornado had passed on. He found the bodies of the two children that were killed entangled with furniture and pieces of timber. ;., . ,V .:'.."v;

Estimate $40,000 Damage.

1,000 ARE WOW LEFT HOMELESS OF STORI i . .

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TWISTED

The total amount of property dam. age near here is estimated at $40,000. Ora Smith is in a very serious con. dltion, having been ' rescued from a pond where he was deposited by the playful wind giant. Smith has been erecting a house for himself, south of the city, doing

most of the work during leisure hours,

This afternoon when the

struck that vicinity he was placing a door in position. The door was torn from the hinges. 8mith and the door were thrown high in the air, carried across a road and dumped in the cold waters of a pond several yards distant. Persons outside the storm area ran to Smith's assistance and pulled him from the water. SMITH RESCUED FROM POND Reseuera said Smith, whose condition Is considered fatal, would have died immediately if he had not been rescued. He was unable to swim because of his Injrles. People of Hagerstown .feared for a time that the entire town would be destroyed by the tornado which was bearing down upon it from New Castle. Th dark funnel was first discovered headed for town at 3:15 o'clock. As it approached rapidly, consternation filled the hearts of the entire population as it seemed inevitable that the full force of the wind would tear a swath right through the center of the town. STORM SWERVES AT GEISLER'S HILL Reaching the crest of Geisler's hill, just west of the city, when hope had been abandoned by the people, who felt themselves in a trap, the storm was deflected southward and continued its course Just outside the corporation limits a short distance. Ed Brock in his house, a hundred yards from the stable, saw the storm pick up the barn and then hurl it to j the ground where the pieces "flew like! a flock of pigeons," as he described the

scene. The house was only slightly damaged, some of the window panes being broken by the eddies of wind which formed the fringe of the main storm. WRESTED FROM FOUNDATION William Thomas' home was jerked from its foundations and badly damaged on the inside, plastering be'ng wrenched from the walls. The family was not at home at the time. Cement-block construction saved the residence of John R. . Adams, but the wind after breaking out window glass, roled carpets upon the floors and scatered furniture about the rooms in heaps. Mr. Adams was struck and slightly cut by pieces of glass. STARTS TO LEAVE HOUSE Terrified by the aproach of -the storm, Mrs. Adams started from the house Into the open, directly in the path of the on-rushing tornado. Mr. Adama to save his Wife was compelled forceably to hold her in the house. Had she gone outdoors, she would probably have met instant death. After demolishing the barn a short distance of the house, the cyclone mow

ed a lane' through' a' heavily wooded tract of land on the Adams farm. TAKE REFUGE IN BASEMENT Joe Goodbar and his wife, tenants in the Perry Holaday farm, fled with a man by the name of Kirby to the cellar when the storm struck the house, which is one-half mile south of town. Weather boarding was ripped from the outside walls of the house and carried for 400 yards to a woods where it

! wa deposited in heaps, storm i . . .... . , r . .... ,

ncavy mm arm a myn wmu in Hagerstown proper acompanied the passing of the storm.

WATKINS SAYS NO HELP NEEDED

Mayor Leb Watkins of New Castle late last night telegraphed to Superintendent Stimson of the Richmond division of the Pennsylvania lines stating that arrangements were made to care for the situation and that it would not be necessary for Richmond to send a relief train.

WILD DUCKS ARE RAINED FROM SKIES

GREENSFORK, Ind., March 12 Rain and hail here probably was the fag end of the tornado which wrought such destruction at New Castle and Hagerstown. Greensfork was directly in the path of the storm. . The rain was so hard that hundreds of wild ducks were beaten to the ground where they were found after the storm, some of them dead, others dazed and apparently paralyzed.

PEOPLE WATCHED TORNADO RAISE FROM GROUND

HAGERSTOWN, Ind., March 12 Persons who watched the death-laden tornado which cut a swath of destruction one-half mile south of here yesterday afternoon say they saw the dark funnel sweep upward from the

ground after it had passed to the southeast of town a short distance. The force of the storm had evidently been spent as reports from other

sections of the country, eat of Hagerstown, indicate only wind and hail. The furrow left by the storm extended from the outskirts of New Castle through to Hagerstown.

Land Makes Trip To New Castle

Upon receipt of the news of the tornado at New Castle late Sunday afternoon Walker Land and Fred Bethard hurried to that city where Mrs. Land and small child were visiting today with Mrs. Land's parents, whose home was outside the lane plowed by the wind.

INCINERATED BODY TAKEN FROM RUINS

TAIL OF TORNADO STRIKES RICHMOND

Preceded by rumbling peals of thunder and flashes of lightning, a heavy downpour of rain descended. The rain lasted only a few minutes, -but during that time it descended in sheets that resembled a tropical downpour. Some persons reported that there was a slight fall of hail with the rain. But this did no damage here.

William Moore, William Hunt and J

F. Schmedinghoff, all of this city, saw

the incinerated body of a man extricated from a house that had " been

blown down and then destroyed by

fire about a mile from New Castle. The party got within a. mile of the city in. an automobile. They left the car and set out on foot. They were met at the outskirts of the city by guards and told that they could not enter the city on account of the number of homeless people. They came back to the city last night. Trees and - poles are lying across the roads leading to New Castle. -

HAIL LIKE WALNUTS FALLS AT ECONOMY

ECONOMY, Ind., March 12 A violent hail and rain storm swept over this section of the county Sunday afternoon but did no damage.. Hail stones as big as walnuts were picked up after the storm was over.

NEW CASTLE, Ind., Mar. 12. Relief - work began shortly-after -the tornado hit this city this afternoon, leaving approximately 1,000 persons homeless. Mayor Leb Watkins, whose home was damaged by the tornado, the roof havine

I been wrenched off, immedi

ately deputized 100 men as special police and placed them at work systematically searching the ruins and

! debris for the dead and

missing. Watkins communicated with Muncie and in a short time traction and telephone linemen were at work among the mass of tangled wires and fallen poles. In a few hours cars were again running between New Castle and Dunreith and Muncie. With the arrival of the militia from Winchester, the soldiers took charge of the rescue work. They barred admission to the storm-ridden districts, except to workers and others who bore acceptable credentials. With both hospitals full of injured, about twenty persons in each, the Elks lodge,

the Baptist and other churches and private homes were thrown open for the shelter of homeless.

NEW CASTLE, Ind., March 1 2 Revised figures at I o'clock this morning showed 22 known dead as the result of the tornado last night. Additional names included in the death toll are: Small Davis child; William Lowery; Ernest Watterman, 6-year-old boy; one unidentified man; Bernice Day, Mrs. Mary Williams, June Day; Mrs. Vera Higgins, daughter of Mrs. Mary Williams. Three persons are reported missing. J. W. McClain who, at first, was thought to be missing was later found badly injured. The whereabouts of his two sons has not been ascertained. " " I ..:- - About three persons are believed to be fatally injured. Indianapolis and Muncie sent special cars with nurses and physicians. Muncie sent 1 2 physicians and 20 nurses. A revised survey shows that approximately 22 blocks of the city were wrecked instead of the 1 8 squares which were originally reported to have been in the path of storm.

EIGHTEEN SQUARES LAID WASTE BY CYCLONE WHICH BURIED MANY UNDER TWISTED DEBRIS NEW CASTLE, Ind., March 1 2 Seventeen persons are among the known dead that

!had been identified here at 9 o'clock last night as the toll of the tornado which swept the

city at 3 o clock yesterday afternoon. At least twenty-five persons are missing among the debris which is being searched as rapidly as possible. Several hundred persons are known to be injured, many of them seriously, according to reports from physicians offices which are filled with the wounded. Property damage in the eighteen squares, which were obliterated by the wind which swept houses from their foundations and carried the twisted and splintered timbers for quite a distance, is estimated at approximately $1,000,000. Three-hundred houses were badly damaged, about one hundred of them being leveled. r

MILITIA COMPANIES REACH NEW CASTLE

CORONER REPORTS ON HIS INQUEST

Coroner R. D. Morrow, after an inquest, announced late last night that Marion Grey, 6 years old, lost his life when his skull wa3 crushed by timber. Howard Grey, 2 years old, suffered internal injuries that resulted in death. The bodies had been taken to Hagerstown by their father, Ernest Grey. The coroner also conveyed word of the condiUon of Mrs. Cross to Louis Ingalls, 109 South West Second street, a son. She is expected to recover.

Additional Tornado News Will Be Found on Page 2

Word was received shortly before midnight that companies of militia from Muncie and Winchester had reached storm-stricken New Castle and had charge of the work of searching the debris for missing bodies.

REPORT FOOR KILLED

Persons who were , able to reach New Castle and return to Richmond last night reported that they heard that Mr. and Mrs. Ike Milliken and four children, residing on a farm four miles east of New Castle, were killed when the house was destroyed by the tornado.

FOUR MORE ON DEAD LIST

NEW CASTLE, Ind., March 12 More names were added to the list of dead early this morning. They were: Orville Davis, 6 years. Ethel Day, 16 years, third child of Day sisters to be killed. Two unidentified men.

TROOPS CLEAR TRACK

NEW CASTLE, Ind., March 121 The first task assigned to the militia companies was cleaning the debris that covered the Rushville branch of the Lake Erie railroad. Doors, windows, shingles, timbers of all kinds, clothing, and furniture were strewn along the- right-of-way through the city.

FRANK CHAMBERS FRIGHTENS ROBBERS FROM HIS HOUSE

Frank Chambers frightened away4a burglar on his premises early Sunday evening. The man who could not be identified by Chambers was seen approaching his house. He did not see Chambers unUl he had come near to the house. 4

- The partial list of the dead which has been compiled at this time follows: Everett Davis. Bernice Davis. Morris Davis. James Meilis. Gray Davis. Mrs. John Davis. Small son of Mrs. John Davis. Miss Elizabeth Day. Mrs. Arch Fletcher. Small daughter of John Haler. 12-year-old son of Mrs. Alice Williamson. Miss Opal Williamson. Newton. The rest of the known dead has not been identified. ' Medical asistance was rushed here from Muncie, the physicians coming in many machines. . The Muncie and Winchester companies of the Indiana National Guard were expected to arrive here shortly after 9 o'clock to take charge of the situation and prevent looting of the . ruins by scavengers. UNKNOWN OCCUPANT MISSING. Only two fires have been reported. One house was completely destroyed. An unknown occupant is believed to be missing. The residence and drug store in a building occupied by M. M. Mlnich was razed by the fire. Only a few citizens had any intima-, tion of the approach of the storm. The Continued On Page Two. '

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