FLOOD TRAGEDY.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 June 1920, Page 5

FLOOD TRAGEDY.

A TOWN UNDER WATER.

DISASTER WITHOUT WARNING. MANY RESIDENTS DROWNED, *• sP»len»ph —Press Assn.—Copyright Received May 31, 5.5 p.m. London, May 30. As a result of heavy rain, the canal bank at Louth (Lincolnshire) burst, and the town was flooded. There were numbers of fatalities, and twenty bodies have so far been recovered. The disaster was due to a water-spout, causing the river Lud, running through the centre of the town, to burst its banks.

The flood largely destroyed residential quarters. Many saved themselves by mounting roofs and trees, from which they were rescued. The flood quickly subsided. The number of fatalities is unknown. —Times Service. HOMES QUICKLY FLOODED. 'FAMILIES CAUGHT AT TEA. CHILDREN'S TRAGIC END. Received May 31, 7.40 p.m. London, May 31. Louth is a pleasant Lincolnshire town, lying at the foot of hills on the edge of a flat, marshy plain. The cloudburst occurred on the hills a few miles distant. Most of the townspeople were driven indoors by rain. Many were at tea, and there was no warning of disaster, as the rainfall locally was not excessive. Tl&e Hood waters burst in doors and windows of houses, and many victims were trapped on gTound floors. One woman escaped by climbing a chimney. Three children were having tea with their mother, and they mounted higher and higher to avoid the rising water, until compelled to cling to a , curtain pole. Then they either dropped from exhaustion or the pole collapsed. All the children were drowned.

The chief police officer attended the telephone continuously for three hours, standing iff four feet of water.—Aus.N.Z. Cable Assn. •

DEATHS TOTAL FIFTY. HOUSES SWEPT AWAY,

Received May 31", 8.50 p.m. London, May 31,

The flood waters at Louth swept away bridges, houses, and walls in a few minutes.

It is estimated the death roll is fifty. Parties are now searching the debris. Only one survivor waa found among the occupants of a terrace of twelve houses destroyed.

The fatalities include four firemen swept away with an engine.—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.

[Louth is a market town in Lincolnshire, fifteen miles ffom Grimsby, and the population in 1911 was 9883- The canal was constructed in the eighteenth century. The town is chiefly an agricultural centre, with iron-founding, the manufacture of agricultural implements, and other industries.]