[Newspaper]
Publication: The Long Beach Daily Telegram
Long Beach, CA, United States
vol. 19, no. 26, p. 1,6, col. 6-8,4
FORTY-EIGHT HOUR STORM
FLOODS NORTHWEST SECTION
Hundreds of Acres Under Water and Dozens of Houses in
Danger — Los Cerritos Trestle Shaky — Conditions
in and About the City.
Hundreds of acres of land in northwest Long Beach submerged and dozens of homes surrounded by water that was continually growing deeper.
The Pacific Electric’s long Los Cerritos trestle open only to foot passengers, who were told by the Pacific Electric to cross, if they wished, at their own risk.
The Long Beach-San Pedro electric line put out of commission.
The Salt Lake railroad’s service to Long Beach and San Pedro cut out by damaged trestles at Clearwater and Hobart.
The Long Beach Los Angeles and Whittier boulevards flooded and rendered impassable.
Basements in various parts of the city flooded and a large number of cesspools caved in.
Municipal railroad partially washed out.
Such are some of the conditions which prevailed here today as a result of the exceptionally severe storm of the past few days. The storm, which is the worst of the season, has swept the whole state. With word this morning from the weather forecaster's office to keep posted the weather signals indicating the approach of another storm from the southwest and dispatches predicting that a still more severe storm will visit this section in within the next forty-eight hours, there was no sign of early relief from the flood conditions.
The crest of the flood had not come down from the inland country this morning and it was predicted that late this afternoon the conditions along the San Gabriel river and Cerritos slough would be considerably worse.
In expectation of a terrific current through the slough this afternoon, all the boats moored therein were moved this morning to new locations in the Long Beach harbor channels.
The lowlands west and northwest of town were under a sea of water this morning. Anaheim road was hidden beneath several feet of water, from the Cerritos slough bridge west as far as the eye could see.
Water was three feet deep this morning around the California Glass Insulator company’s plant, where pumps were worked throughout the night to keep the flood out of the furnace room. This company lost thousands of dollars last year through damage to its plant and stock by storm water.
Crippled telephone service made it difficult to ascertain the exact condition of a number of families whose homes were surrounded by water in the northwest territory, but no reports were received of any who had been forced to flee from their dwellings up to noon. W. D. Moulton of Perris road said today over the telephone that practically his entire property was covered with water from a foot to eighteen inches deep. Similar conditions prevailed at other places.
That some measure for relief and possible rescues of many persons living in the district west of American avenue and between State and Willow streets and in the district west of Magnolia between Anaheim and Willow would have to be taken if the water kept on rising was considered certain this forenoon.
In some places between State and Willow the water stood nearly three feet deep and in one place two houses were marooned by a lake that slushed up to the sills and over the first floor. Practically the whole district was a sheet of water. Hill street was inundated for a distance of eight blocks.
The Pacific Electric stopped running cars over the Los Cerritos trestle early this morning, passengers being advised they would have walk across the trestle to transfer to cars on the other side. A number of pilings were washed out from under the bridge and after a time, as the trestle became more unsteady and "wobbly," passengers were told to walk across it at their own risk.
Inspector Beauchamp spent the morning at the trestle and helped carry the sacks of mail which had to be transferred from one mail car to another.
The last car was sent across the trestle shortly before 7 o’clock this morning.
R. L. Bisby, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce, returned to Long Beach this morning from Santa Ana and reported that all traffic between Santa Ana and Los Angeles is being routed via Huntington Beach and Long Beach, owing to a wrecked Pacific Electric trestle at Clearwater. Between Artesia and Clearwater, he said, a space about two miles in diameter was inundated.
The Long Beach-San Pedro branch of the Pacific Electric, over which cars were operated slowly this morning, was reported entirely out of commission at 1:15 this afternoon, owing to trouble at the Cerritos slough trestle.
A truck belonging to the City Transfer company, driven by George Miller and containing also two actresses from the Boston theater and their trunks, was stalled on the Long Beach boulevard this morning, while en route to Los Angeles, and the occupants of the vehicle had to be rescued in a boat.
The water reached the bed of the truck and got into the carbureter. The driver swam and waded through the water, reached a house with a telephone and sent word to the office here for help. A lifeboat was dispatched from the Long Beach bathhouse to the scene, being conveyed in another truck owned by the transfer company, and the trio were taken from the marooned truck in safety. The actresses were brought back to Long Beach. The point where the truck had become stalled was beyond Los Cerritos and near the second bridge.
The actresses were Miss Laurette Boyd and Miss Low Francis, comediennes. They laughingly told of their experience this afternoon.
Answering the appeals for help from people residing back in the country where they have no boats, Assistant Fire Chief Clarence Craw and a man of his company went on a rescue expedition along the Whittier boulevard at noon today.
With a commodious automobile loaded with a boat and supplies the fire officer started in the search for a family said to be marooned in the lowlands of Santa Ana river near Whittier.
The rescue expedition was inaugurated by Mayor Whealton, who had been notified of the plight of the family by County Supervisor W. E. Hinshaw.
According to the telephone message from the county official several fruitless attempts have been made to reach the family, who are in a desperate condition as the water is slowly but surely rising.
Wagons, autos and even rafts have been tried in the efforts of the rescuers to reach the marooned people but to no avail. As there were no boats in the neighborhood, the hurry call was sent to the county which in turn communicated with the Long Beach officials.
A piteous yet humorous touch was given the rescue work of the Long Beach police department, when, answering a call to that neighborhood, Detective Mitchell found an aged German woman marooned in a house at Walnut and State streets with a dog and five chickens as her sole companions.
The officer was compelled to wade through a lake nearly three feet deep to reach the house, but he went bravely through the water as he had been ordered to rescue the lone occupant of
Navigating the small sized lake, Mitchell entered the house and found the woman seated on a cot with a dog on one side and five bedraggled chickens roosting on the other side of her.
The officer gallantly offered to save her, but she refused to leave her pets. The detective sought to persuade her but his arguments were in vain for all he received was ungentle commands to leave the house.
So despite orders, despite his chivalrous instincts, and despite the steadily growing lake that threatened to engulf the small house, the would-be rescuer beat a hasty retreat.
The tides last night and this morning badly undermined Charles I. D. Looff’s storehouse on Seaside boulevard, between San Diego and Ontario avenues, which was similarly affected but in a lesser degree by the last previous high tides. Mr. Looff believes the building will stand, however, as he put in some 20-foot piling since the other storm. A green dwelling near Mr. Looff’s storehouse also was undermined seriously last night, and the owner, who lives in Alhambra, was notified by telephone this morning that the structure might collapse if another high, cutting tide should come in.