A DESTRUCTIVE TORRENT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XII, Issue XII, 3 July 1875, Page 3

A DESTRUCTIVE TORRENT.

XINKTY miles of soliil ice! a body of ice ninety miles long, haif a mile wide, and ten or twelve feet thick, moving at the rate of live miles an hour down a river towards a point where the channel was choked up with immovable ice for a distance of four miles. This is what (a correspondent says) the peoplo of Port Jervis and Germantown—two villages 011 thy Delaware River, where the Erie Railway crosses that stream—recently saw. The destruction of the two towns seemed inevitable, for they are built for the most part on low ground, and it was certain that if the choked-up passage of the river could not bo opened the ninety miles of ice and water would pour over its banks and sweep the houses away. For several days great efforts had been made by the authorities to blow up the choked ice by means of gunpowder and nitro-glyeeriiie ; and a charge of 501b. of the latter material was successfully exploded, shivering the solid body of ice to a very great extent and opening a small channel. This was done not a moment too soon, and indeed not soon enough to prevent all damage. The torrent began to pour through the channel thus opened, which momentarily became larger ; but the passage was not large enough for the escape of all the water. It began to pour over into the streets ; and the people lied from their homes in terror. It soon flooded all the lower part of tho two towns to the depth of four feet, and as it swept along with great velocity it overthrew some of tlie houses and damaged others. The torrent also carried away four of the spans of tho Erie Railway bridge and a suspension bridge belonging to other owners. By night the tlood had all passed, and the people were ablet" return to their ruined homes. The amount of dainago .sustained was about 140,000 dollars, of which the loss of the Eric Company was about 70,000 dollars. Similar floods occured at Wilkesbarre, Pittston, Williamsport, Scranton, and other towns on the Susquehanna River; and the aggregate amount of damage douo was very large.