Asheville Victims Claimed By Flood

Asheville Victims Claimed By Flood

Front page article naming the people who died and went missing in the flood. Property damage estimated to be $10,000,000. Flood deemed the worst flood in the history of the area. More bodies have yet to be identified, including a young boy and a man accidentally trapped in a furniture store. People on the concrete bridge to West Asheville watched helplessly as multiple men women and children were stranded on rooftops floating under the bridge. Multiple bodies have yet to be recovered. Asheville is left without electricity or power due to the generators at the Weaver power plant being underwater. All trains are suspended and it is unknown when service will resume. Hundreds of families are now homeless, and rely on a relief center set up at city hall for aid. All of the reserve supplies are underwater, and downtown is 'a scene of desolation and havoc'. Ice is unable to be made in Asheville until waters recede. Police have seized all remaining gasoline in the city. A shortage of farm products is expected. The gas plant is broken beyond repair, and a substation providing power to the city won't be back online for days. The rain stopped last night. Three dams broke: Kanuga and Oceola Lake Dams went out around 7pm, and Highland Lake Dam followed in the hours after. The National Casket company--who at the time was one of the biggest industries in Asheville--saw its plants in Riverside Park and West Asheville submerged and ruined. Other large warehouses in Riverside Park were similarly ruined or swept away by the water. Several houses were swept away in Biltmore Village. Waters, aside from some in Biltmore Village, were too rough for any boat rescues to occur. The old Smith iron bridge and several other bridges went out in the flood, but concrete bridges like the one leading to West Asheville stood firm. Many buildings, like the Southern State Bank, are flooded to their ceilings; the doors unable to be opened in the water. The waters of the flood rose 'remarkably' quick, necessitating the aforementioned boat rescues from homes and hotels in Biltmore Village, like the Glen Rock. Train tunnels near Old Fort were completely blocked by mud and debris, and mudslides on Saluda Mountain continued. Even if the flooding went down, trains would be unable to resume operation for 1-2 days. Marshall is suspected to have been completely destroyed; as it was built on a ledge and the waters were headed directly towards it. Asheville and its surrounding towns were effectively cut off from the world. All bridges along the French Broad in Henderson County have been washed away, aside from two concrete bridges. Several people attempting to rescue people died, most from their boats overturning, which lead to their drownings. Hendersonville, as of July 16, was effectively cut off from the rest of the world aside from a badly-broken wire service. Its power plant was put out of commission, and its reservoir overflowed with dark, muddy water. Train routes into the town are damaged. Nearly every bridge along the creek is gone, aside from the concrete railroad bridge. The date train service is expected to resume is unknown. Due to mudslides, the roads and train tracks were effectively unusable, and it is unknown when their use would resume. Damages to Buncombe County roads are estimated to cost at least half a million dollars. Drivers offering their services were mobilized by the city government and are working with the city police to transport people. Asheville is in complete darkness due to the gas plant being ruined by floodwater, and the power plant still being underwater. Telephone service still works. Eighteen men, women, and children were rescued from drowning at the Hans Rees Tannery, & the Reed family was rescued from the Swannanoa River by Sheriff Mitchell and Patrolman McIntosh. A call for charity is put out by the governor. No trains are being operated on the Murphy division, and won't be for 'several days'. Onlookers stand on the West Asheville Bridge and watch buildings float by before colliding with the bridge. Police seize the remaining gas in the city so that first responders would have it when they need it. Gasoline shortage caused by the flood washing away of Standard Oil's reserve tank. Gas shortage expected to last a week, gas prices rise to $1 before rising even further, and livery transport becomes the only means of transportation. Due to damages from the flood, Asheville's homes and hospitals are left without any ice. A relief committee headed by Thomas J. Harkins meets at the city hall and raises $2300 from attendees to fund relief work in and around the city. Various committees were established to provide aid; such as food, water, clothing, and sanitation, among others. Homeless families were housed in a local high school building. Property damage to industrial plants alongside the river were "second only to the loss of life"; 10 million dollars is the conservative estimate. Several warehouses were left underwater; the equipment, records, and products inside all ruined. Little remains of Azalea or the companies that set up shop there. The death toll is expected to rise as more bodies are identified. All theaters aside from The Majestic have been opened to the homeless to stay in. Six large bridges along the French Broad have washed away. Alexander and Marshall are suspected to have been heavily damaged by the waters, due to their proximity to the river, and the fact that both were hit hard by the 1910 flood. Homes along the Swannanoa have washed away, their inhabitants barely having enough time to get out. Efforts to fix train tracks near Flat Creek have been hampered by heavy rains. Two nurses drowned trying to aid a patient.

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