Show Sister of Father Marceau Writes Of Disastrous Neva England Fires The following letter was received I Iby by the Rev V. V C. C Marceau Pastor of St. St Marguerites Marguerite's Church from his sister Madeleine who is secretary to the Geology Department at the University of New Hampshire It Ittes tells tes of the New England Forest Fires which just devastated that region To an outsider such fires I are hard to understand unless the theIs person is aware that woods and forests forests for for- for j ests are arc in the close vicinity of practically every New England I I City and thus threaten them with sparks which Ignite scores of fires within a city at one and the same time I The letter follows Dear Val J If you are receiving the BOSTON POST you would have seen Somersworth Somersworth Somersworth Som- Som In the headlines yesterday yesterday yesterday yester yester- day morning Course I know youre you're aware of or New England forest fires ires but to us it was more marc realistic that that We Ve were and are still surrounded surrounded surrounded sur sur- rounded by fire ire Forest fires have been raging all about us for a week now but last Thursday afternoon the wind started started started start start- ed blowing with mile hour gusts and the fire that was burning burnIng burning burn- burn Ing in the Farmington woods headed headed head head- headed ed straight for the city of Roches Roches- ter When I got home at p.m. p.m. p.m. p. p m. m we had to drive through the streets of Somersworth with our headlights on for the smoke was wasso wasso wasso so thick About 5 o'clock Bernice and her kids came down to Somersworth Somersworth Somers Somers- worth after being from their home At the time of their arrival their home was in direct line with the path of the fire and they had no hope of their home being saved After seeing his family safely in Somersworth Joe went back to Rochester and wet down his home and grounds with a garden hose with hardly any pressure to speak of while down at the corner of the street along the railroad tracks at atthe atthe atthe the far end of their street running parallel with the main street the flames were twenty-five twenty feet high and changing their course grad grad- I It sped right behind the Frisbie Frisbie Frisbie Fris- Fris bie Hospital with ambulance and buses ready to evacuate all the patients even though it was a fireproof fireproof fireproof fire fire- proof building All this time we were sitting listening to the radio shouting warnings Fire in Rochester is out of control even though thousands of men are fighting it Portland Street homes have been destroyed Path of fire ire in direct line with the city of Somersworth Men DESPERATELY DESPERATELY DESPERATELY DES DES- needed in Somersworth Somers- Somers worth Please report at once at the theire fire ire station while cruising cars with loudspeakers were running up and down the streets telling us approximately the same thing At this time they believed that Somersworth Somersworth Som Sam would be completely levelled levelled lev lev- lew as the Pumping Station would be the first to go and all we have are artesian wells Then the wind changed Ive I've never sat through a longer night The children were in bed but never slept because they had seen most of the fire while driving j ing g to Somersworth rth Its It's something they'll never forget Finally Joe was able to get back to Somersworth Somersworth Somersworth Somers Somers- worth to tell Bern that their house had been spared and that he was going back to help fight the fire and didn't know when hed he'd get back to Somersworth as all aU traffic was restricted Sometime during the night the wind died down and once more the fire w was was s under control about two miles from Somersworth Friday was a relatively busy da day with no one daring to leave the house for fear that wed we'd have to I evacuate if Il the wind picked up again which It did at night But this time It was a southwest wind Waterboro Limerick Shapleigh and most of Alfred right outside of or Sanford has been destroyed Biddeford Kennebunk Kennebunkport and Portland have also suffered ily By According to the thc Rochester officials officials of of- their city alone has suffered suffered suf suf- a million dollars worth of or damage and 63 houses destroyed Well We'll send you some of the lo local al papers when we can get our hands handson Ion on some Bar Harbor has been wiped wiped wip wip- ed cd out too but we figure that the millionaires can take the loss more than these small towns John D. D estate was threatened in Bar Harbor and he sent a re request request request re- re quest to pay ten dollars an hour to any men who wanted to protect his home but I guess people were too busy trying to save the town to tobe tobe tobe be impressed by his offer That's what's nice about these small town folks in an emergency emergency- everyone was In there pitching regardless of whose property it was I 1 didn't Intend making this such sucha a lengthy letter but once you get started you could go on and on Mama was wa afraid you'd get radio I reports and and would worry about our home which at the present is not in the line of fire Althou Although h at onetime one onetime onetime time on Saturday the fire ire had a along along along long that Milton back road five mile miJe front charging toward Milton all the way to Berwick a- a I which directed it to the Berwick woods and into Maine Were We're still In great danger today Monday because the wind is supposed to pick up again this afternoon afternoon- winds we hope I wont won't attempt to give you all allI the fire ire news because there areso are areso areso I so many but about ten Maine towns have been completely wiped out with not a trace of a house left standing Some of these towns are Edna called up Friday morning and said that their city was threatened threatened threatened threat threat- ened by fire on Thursday night al alI al- al so They had lots of smoke but most of it coming from the southern southern southern south south- ern New Hampshire fires William also called and said that he was called out of work Friday as the woods woods' at the end of his street were on fire ire He seemed to think that the fire ire was out but its it's almost impossible to say that a fire ire is completely out until weve we've had some rain We haven't had a drop of rain since September 1 and hardly hardly hardly hard hard- ly any rain at all during the sum sum- mer sum sum-I The temperatures have been inthe in inthe inthe the seventies and eighties all during during during dur dur- ing the month of October so youcan you youcan youcan can just imagine how dry everything everything everything every every- thing was Another thing that is pathetic is that most of these fires ires were set by fire bugs Cape Ann is almost completely destroy- destroy eded Cape Cod has also suffered heavy losses One fire bug was caught in Gloucester Mass and was beaten within an inch of his life by angry farmers who had lost everything but the clothes they wore Which reminds me most of these people didn't have time to save a thing as the speed of the fire was terrific All this talk may only serve to give you a scare but that's not what its it's intended for Unless the wind changes or a new fire breaks out we are out of danger because people are patrolling our streets night long and the fire crews are organized whereas last Thursday everyone was caught unaware Another Another An An- Another other thing dont don't try to telephone because it is impossible It took Edna and William better than half halfa a day to reach us and Rochester lines have been burned down |