GREAT STORM IN NEW YORK.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 137, 2 August 1911, Page 6

GREAT STORM IN NEW YORK.

oPANIC AT A CHARITY FAIR. ’/ New York, June 11. A tropical storm Unprecedented in fury for this lattitude paralysed the transportation of New York yesterday evening and wrought enormous damage, leaving the city and suburbs in a sorry slate to-day. The gale, was Mowing at seventy miles an hour and unroolyd houses, disabled telegraphed wires, drove vessels from their moorings, aud smashed acres of windows. The lightning killed throe persons am. I destroyed many cosily■ electric signs. Rain descended ink such torrents that the .servers woke" not able to carry off the water and some oi the streets wore all but navigable. Through the kiosk entrances' of the ventilating shafts the wafer rushed into the subway, so That the power had to be shut off and trains were stopped,. The same thing occurred in connection with tiie tramways, the conduits \carring tne electric current being filled with water which short-circuited the power.

The electric plants in several pleasure resorts wore struck by lightning, and huge areas filled with elaborate mechanical railways and water chutes were suddenly plunged in darkness and thousands of persons had to emerge the best way they could. In the scramble for safety from ning,. women fainted and many .wore injured.- : jA train carrying several thousand holiday-makers from Coney Island to Now .York was struck by lightning and many of the passengers received shrieks.' The crush in the railway stations was terrific.

The worst panic occurred at Flusha Xiong Island suhurb, where ten thousand persons had assembled in tents at a “Society Fair and Amateur Cii'tus,” arranged by leading, citizens for the benefit of a hospital. Tho first gusts of tho storm levelled every tent. In otic of thorn three thousand people wore watching an amateur circus troupe. Elephants were leaving the ring and a squadron of a crack Yeomanry corps was entering to give a riding exhibition when tho tent collapsed. The elephants and horses, panic-stricken under the heavy canvas, trumpeted and neighed in alarm. At tho same moment the shrieking spectators all rose at once to escape, and the stands around the ampi theatre l collapsed.

It took throe hours before tho canvas was removed and everybody rescued, and a dozen persons bad to nu sent to the hospital:. Two companies of Boy , Scouts drhgged hundreds of people from beneath a tent. In a neighbouring tent Mr., ( James J. Corbett, the former prize lighter, was the chipf jrescuer, and in a third a woman isingcr attempted .to, 'keep the audience cjilm by singing.“Killarney” amid life drenching rain : ;puj flapping of canvas. . . liiutf I < ■ i IL li .Ol I >