FOURTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART XI. 795 



Convent, at 36th and Burt Streets, in Bemis Park, and at 24th and Lake 

 Streets. At other points along the path, in the more open places, the 

 wreckage and debris lay in a general direction coincident with the path, 

 this is from the southwest to the northeast. A terrific grinding, roaring 

 noise that was distinctly heard several blocks distant from the path 

 accompanied the storm. 



The total number of persons killed in Omaha was 94; this includes those 

 instantly killed, and those whose deaths resulted from injuries received. 

 The number of persons seriously and slightly injured will run into the 

 hundreds. The greatest number of persons killed in any locality was in 

 the vicinity of 24th and Lake Streets; that section being the most thickly 

 populated, and the houses there being of poorer construction were gener- 

 ally completely demolished. The number of animals killed was 33 horses, 

 four cows and five mules. The number of houses completely demolished 

 was 600, and 1,129 were partially destroyed or badly damaged. The esti- 

 mated property loss, including homes, furniture, personal property, wiring, 

 poles, street cars, trees, fences, etc., is about three and one-half million 

 dollars. 



The following meteorological conditions were noted in connection with 

 the passage of the storm, it being borne in mind that this station for 

 which the data are given, is southeast of, and about one and one-fourth 

 miles distant from the nearest point within the path of the tornado. 

 The barometer which had begun to fall on the 22d, continued to fall 

 steadily during the day up to the moment of the passage of the storm, 

 at which time the lowest pressure was recorded, then the pressure began 

 to increase rapidly with marked fluctuations in its movement upward. 

 At 7 a. m. the pressure was 28.51 inches; at noon, 28.36; at 4 p. m. 28.17 

 and the lowest pressure, 27.93, was recorded as the tornado passed, and at 

 7 p. m. it had increased to 28.12. At 7 a. m. the temperature was 40 

 degrees, and continued rising until 4 p. m. when the minimum for the day, 

 68 degrees, occurred. The sky was overcast from the early morning with 

 stratocumulus clouds, until the middle of the afternoon when for an hour 

 or so it was only partly obscured. About 4:30 p. m. the sky again became 

 overcast, and grew more and more threatening and ominous in appear- 

 ance until the terrible storm, aproaching from the southwest, burst upon 

 the city. At 5:10 p. m. distant thunder was heard, and rain began to 

 fall which continued until 7:35 p. m., falling heavily at intervals, small 

 hail mingling with the rain from 5:40 p. m. to 5:50 p. m. The prevailing 

 wind. for several hours preceding the storm was from the south, but for 

 a period of 15 minutes before the storm struck it became very changeable, 

 with increasing velocity, and blew from all directions, but the general 

 direction maintained during the passage of the tornado was from the 

 southwest. The extreme velocity of the wind recorded at the station 

 during the storm was 34 miles an liuur, occurring at 6:17 p. m. 



As a further description of the meteorological elements accompanying 

 the tornado, I include herein the notes of tiie observations made by Prof. 

 A. E. Schmitt, a member of the faculty of Creighton University, who kindly 

 furnished them for my information, and as the university from which his 

 observations were made is located at 25th and ralifornia streets, or within 



