| Show Texas fexas Hurricane Leaves Deaths Havoc in Wake t Relief Workers Sent to Care for Scores of Injured Along Rio Grande Crande TROOPS PATROLLING AREA Survivor Tells of Seeing Many Houses Explode 0 Dr fT United Tress EDINBURG Tex Sept 6 work was hastily organized in the thc lower Rio Grande valley of ot Tex today in the wake of t the seasons season's most mosi destructive hurricane I IThe The property loss was counted Ir in millions of dollars I The death toll remained uncertain with lines of communication stil still disrupted Reports received here said that ten tea were dead in Brownsville and that thai three unidentified bodies had been beer recovered at Harlingen where th the national Red CroS Cross established relIef headquarters Word from Matamoros Mexico across the Rio Grande fr from m Brownsville Browns Browns- ville yule Indicated heavy loss of life there thereas as the storm demolished adobe tures CATHEDRAL FALLS James Davis air pilot reached reached Houston with a report received a at Brownsville police headquarters that five rive Mexicans were killed when the roof of the Matamoros cathedral col laps lapsed d. d Davis said estimates made in iu Brownsville of the total dead in the area ranged from fifty upward to Relief ReliC f workers indicated Indicated 5 it might 5 be days before n- n final o t uld be made of casualties s on the M Mexican xi can side of ot the Rio Grande Red Bed Cross officials estimated that more than were Injured in the hurricane Special trains carried physicians nurses foodstuffs water into the area A Automobiles Automobiles' and airplanes airplanes airplanes air air- planes also were used by relief relict agen agen- cies Troops from Fort Sam Houston at San Antonio arrived to augment the force of special officers the area WIRES DOWN Communication systems still were impaired to many points delaying the checkup on loss of life UIe and property damage A dozen small towns In the path of the hurricane had not been heard from A message from a Pan-American Pan Airways pilot read Loss to valley will run into mil ml lions Relief Relic and help needed at once Federal troops were in the stricken area today aiding in relief relic work but buta a formal declaration of martial law had not been issued by Governor Miriam A. A Ferguson Apparently the heaviest lo loss oss of life occurred at Matamoros across the Rio Grande from Brownsville where a cathedral collapsed Unverified reports reports reports re re- re- re ports r reached ached here bere that 30 were killed in the collapse of the cathedral and that there were 20 other deaths in ir Continued on Page Pue Two 4 I SCORES DIE IN TEXAS STORM Continued mom from Pate Pare One the town Direct communication had hadnot hadnot hadnot not yet been established with Matamoros Mata Mata- moros and the accuracy of these reports reports reports re re- re ports still was not riot established The death toll at Brownsville was estimated at ten with hundreds in in- lured Two were reported killed at Harlingen and md 53 Injured Three were reported dead at San Benito HUNDREDS INJURED Forty were hurt at Weslaco 20 at San Juan at Mercedes near the borderI border I dont don't believe belleve there was a small building In Brownsville that escaped damage said E. E W. W Harrigan railway railway railway rail rail- way express messenger who spent the night there Many large brick buildings were caved in When daylight came It seemed to me that the town literally was blown to pieces A pilot who flew new over Brownsville and Matamoros said the water was three and four feet deep about the city The pilot said he observed a man manI I standing on the International bridge between Brownsville e and Matamoros waving a flag Hag frantically A man who waded here from San Bonito BenIto said damage there was se se- se vere He said no loss Joss of or life lUe had been reported Dr John W. W Brown director of ot the state health department mobilized members of his staff for duty He said pollution of water supplies and shock from irom exposure constituted the chief dangers facing the sufferers PLAGUE FEARED The health unit was equipped with witha a supply of typhoid fever serum to immunize as many residents as pos pos- sible The causeway connecting Corpus Christi Christ with lowlands across the bay was washed out but damage In that area was comparatively light lICht McAllen was without water or lights last night Water also was cu cut cutoff of off in Harlingen San B Benito nito am and Brownsville Highways railroads arid and airports were flooded in a wide area High waters isolated several trains The Southern Pacific Houston Houston- Brownsville passenger train was Vias stopped here Another train was marooned marooned marooned ma ma- near Corpus Christi The storm was the most destructive of ot the year Some houses at Harlingen Har Har- lingen were to tossed ed a quarter of a mile by the wind according to Deput Deputy Sheriff J. J D. D Boren who made his ils way WilY here SA SAW W HOUSES EXPLODE I saw houses explode as the wind struck truck them Boren said In a few cases the wind whipped the four walls vails up leaving the furniture and floor loor intact Many roofs root were blown bIown off of with the four walls wails collapsing and pinning occupants In In Weslaco houses were pitched like ike cards One was wac l lifted ted from its foundations and pitched end over end endor for lor or a l quarter of at a mile It fell in a I tourist camp crushing several small cottages I A message relayed to a railroad dispatcher r from Harlingen appealed for food and drinking water Mayor C. C K Quinn of San Antonio organized the second train at the request request request re re- re- re quest of Congressman It carried doctors and nurses Another Another An An- other was dispatched from Houston with clear track orders to the stricken area A relief train arrived here from Kingsville last night bear bearIng bearing Ing ng drinking water and milk donated by the owners of ot the famous King ranch Governor Ferguson ordered all aU available ran rangers ers to the area RELIEF MONEY SENT The American Red Bed Cross CroS ordered 10 relief workers to the area and Federal Relief Relict Director Harry Hopkins hopkins Hop Hop- kins authorized the use of federal unemployment relief work fund The September relief allotment for Hidalgo and arid Willacy counties counties coun coun- ties was ordered released at once Streets were patrolled in Harlingen liar liar- lingen to prevent looting of wrecked stores and homes The Wilmond hotel there was converted con can vented into a hospital for children Buildings wrecked beyond repair In Harlingen included the new city auditorium and the Vall Valley y Midwinter win Mid ter Fair building One three-story three structure wa was flattened to the ground CD U By United Pros HOUSTON Texas Sept 6 An 6 An eyewitness eyewitness eyewitness eye eye- witness account of the devastating lower Rio Grande valley hurricane was brought here today by J. J W. W Harrigan Harrigan Har Han rigan railway express messenger who arrived from Brownsville on the first Missouri sour P Pacific train to leave the zone I pulled into Brownsville sometime sometime some some- time after 9 p. p m. m Monday said Harrigan Har Har- rigan The wind was blowing about abou 35 miles an hour then but 30 minutes minutes min rain utes later It was literally shrieking about the depot They said it blew bIew miles mUes an hour but I think conservatively that tha some of those gusts reached a velocity of miles an hour BUILDINGS CAVE IN INI INI INI I I spent the night on the train and when daylight came it seemed to me that the town was blown bIown to pieces I dont don't believe there was a small smal building In Brownsville that escapee escaped damage and most of the larger brick buildings were caved inThe in The entire city was WM littered Uttered with debris debri and there was not a plate glass window in the city The whole town was covered with water It came camerom from rom the rain because the river remained re re- re in its banks I a-I saw no bodies but heard there were many persons injured Most of the population deserted their homes and took shelter during the night in hotels and in the railroad railroad rail rail- road station The roof of the station was ripped to pieces by the wind BRIEF CAL CALM I The wind blew for seven hours hour without letting up Then there was wa wasa a flat calm caIrn that lasted about 30 min mm- utes Then it started again and kept kep up for another seven hours before i ii began to slacken The people of ot Brownsville San SaD Benito and Harlingen were left in absolute misery by the storm The water that flooded the city streets street and the rainfall kept everyone drenched for hours on end and they were without food and nd water However they probably have gotten gotten gotten got got- ten food and water by now because I the Missouri Pacific sent ent two special trains into the towns from Raymond Raymond- yule ville and Kingsville lle |
