The Cedarville Herald, Volume 70, Numbers 1-26

Page Four Friday, June 6,1947 MHie-GedArville, O. Herald Red Cross Issues Report on Texas City Disaster of Late April Report Texas City ,Explosion As Of April 24 t 1947: t Homes D estroyed________ 127 Homes D am aged__ -major 14S Homes D am aged___ minor 225 Trailer Houses Damaged_27 Other Buildings Destroyed Business _________ 15 Other Buildings Damaged B u s in ess____ _____ 40 Number d e a d _____________ 425 Number persons injured E s tim a te__________ 3,000 Number persons Hospitalized - ____ - 824 Number communities in •which mass shelters are located-------------------- 1 Number masfc sh e lte rs__ __ 1 Number in mass shelter — 1,000 Number persons being fed—e s tim a te___ —____1,500 Number "Burses assigned__ 144 Total paid workers assigned— 52 The Houston Post: Sunday, April 27, 1947. Cold facts and figures tell story on how Red Cross saved lives in blast, says newsman. By G. E. McClelland, managing editor, Galveston News-Tribune written for the Galveston News and The Associated Press. Galveston, April 26—From cold facts and figures comes the heart­ warming, reassuring and remark­ able story of how the American Red Cross saved lives and gave succor to Texas City in the midst of its tragic bedlam and misery'. Starting with the Galveston chapter and /blank in newspaper article) the line, a survey Sat­ urday of the Red Cross' activities for the first six days of the Texas City anguish unfolded a abehind- the -scenes drama which should be told. Numerous relief groups and thousands of individuals played magnificent parts in allaying the human suffering in atomized-like Texas City but once again it has been proven that no pne single organization except the American Red Cross could have rallied the resources so desperately needed. And it was the Red Cross which suffered the stigma of some un­ fortunate criticism when it act­ ually, after all facts w’erc in, de­ served only unstinted praise. The Red Cross belongs to the Amer­ ican people and certainly the A- merican people opened their hearts and purses in this disaster as never before. The awesome thunderclap of doom from the S. S. Grandcamp struck a t 9:12 a. m. Wednesday, April 16. Even before the first plea “for God’s sake, send the Red Cross," came from a tele­ phone operator in the dazed, de­ vastated and blood-spattered com­ munity, the Galveston county chapter was in action. Within minutes from the time the blasts were fe lt in Galveston and the ominous black smoke boiled up into the sky across the bay, the city’s doctors and hos­ pitals'Were put on the alert. Then the various branches of the Red Cross volunteer corps went to work. Within thirty minutes rescue squads were on the way from Galveston to Texas City. Within 15 minutes after the explosion, buses were a t Galveston hospitals ready to take doctors and nurses to Texas City. The Galveston county chapter Purvey chairman was in Texas City within an hour to determine what was needed and found the Texas City Red Cross survey chairman had died in the blast. Gray ladies and nurses’ aides reported to the hospitals, along with hundreds of other Galveston women. Four first aid crew members from Galveston were among the first in Texas City, arriving with blood plasma, stretchers and other supplies. A short time later 50 more men were sent. Within 15 minutes after the firs t blast, the canteen corps re­ ported and within two hours had coffee, milk and all the supplies from two bakeries in Texas City. A mobile kitchen was in operation in Texas City within six hours. Nearly 800 refugees were shel­ tered the first day and 8,845 were given shelter the next seven days. More than 600 garments were sent to Texas City the first day while local hospitals received, among other things, 645 sheets, 413 pillowcases, 1907 towels and wash cloths, 700 comb3,500 tooth­ brushes, 300 boxes of soap and 25 shaving kits. Several hundred nurses aand doctors arrived the first day by auto, planes and by busloads un­ til there were an estimated 2000 in the area. A11 local Red Cross medical supplies, including 900 pints of whole blood, were made available immediately. Local and Texas City doctors and hospitals bore the first brunt of responsibility, organizing first aid teams to go into the shattered area and manning the hospitals. Then later in the day, national Red Cross medical personnel and top medical men from the Army and other medical groups arrived. Immense amounts of medical supplies began to arrive from alt over the state and nation, by highway and by air. The Galves­ ton airport was swamped with relief planes. With these supplies hundreds of lives of the injured were saved. For instance, due to valiant efforts of all doctors, nurses and their aides, due to the ability of the Red Cross to call upon one and all for supplies, not a single patient reached by rescue work­ ers lost his life due to shock. Penicillin sayed many others* At one time this valuable infec­ tion-fighting drug was being used in Galveston a t a rate equal to the entire national production for a considerable period. A successful fight of gas gan­ grene saved other lives. The Red Cross called in national special­ ists to advise on such cases. Many types of surgical instru­ ments were not available in this immediate region so the Galves­ ton chapter called on Red Cross Midwestern area headquarters in St. Louis for hundreds of cases, grosses and dozens of the varied instruments and supplies needed. Medical supplies houses in St. Louis were kept open a t night to load the supplies. Some of the supplies were not available in St. Louis. They were obtained in Chicago only 12 hours latex*, all the supplies costing $57,500 were loaded on a navy plane and flown to Galveston. Another request brought a demonstration of the resources of the Red Cross. There was a call fo r 200 grams of the scarce strep­ tomycin. It was located in Brook- yln. New York, and flown by the army to Galveston. The amount of medical supplies which reached the area was stag­ gering. Approximately 700 families have registered with the Red Cross fo r post-disaster rehabil­ itation. Trained workers will be stationed here for many weeks working on the program. There are other facts and fig­ ures, such as the 13,000 telephone and telegraph messages handled to all parts of the nation; such as the fact that sufficient trans- KILLS* FL!ES"fQMNEEKS!= *«* l- L-Jl rT r . , S v r • •r You help cattle gain...dairy cows produce*..young stock grow..* when you keep down the flies* r lp JM A 3D .DX SPRAY m yy farmmudmgs S L M I ISL A N p S T 0 £K C A IT lE L On* spraying controls flies for weeks. See ns for Purina, fann-pzoved spraying plans. WE W ill FIGURE YOUR COST SAIT B10CK Iodized and . plain. Long lasting. W l.lH fl OYSTER SHELL PwMvX % OYSTER SHELL 99% purs for strong egg shells. r P U R I N A , WEED KILLER ( n urns PASTURES f i w E O COM ROWS i .FENCEROWS ------- IfOtWSTtMS LET PISS WQRttIHEMSELYB Simplymixnew Purina Pigiab Granules into the feed. P1STAB GRANULES P U P A FLY SPRAY for A t HOME WITH 5% 9 .0 .T. Sills Hiss, mosquito**, Roadws.coats.*tdStdal«ss. A F T E R C O C C 1D I O S I S Stimulate chicks* ap­ p e tite w ith Pu r in a Chek-R-Ton. PURINA CHEK-R-TON R. G, WELLS CedarviUe, Ohio Phone 6-1031 i •» portation was arranged to evacu­ ate 4,000 people from Texas City within. 30 minutes, if necessary; such as the fact that 120,000 sandwiches, 150,000 sweet rolls and doughnuts, 50,000 gallons oof soup and 1,000 cases of milk were ' served to all who needed it; and such is the fac t that total cost will be around $250,000. Excerpts From: “Army Disaster Flan in Effect Minutes after Ex­ plosion; Red Cross Praised by Col. Horan." (Galveston News, April 27, 1947.) “Three minutes after the frightful explosions at Texas Gity April 16, which took such a ter­ rific toll of life and property, the army disaster plan a t Fort Crockett was put into effect, with Galveston chaptex*,.American Red Cross, ten minutes later requisi­ tioning army aid in the moving of injured to hospitals. / The dramatic part the Fort Crockett and Red Cross personnel played in giving aid and succor f td the bewildred and sorrow- ladened people of the city across the bay, is told in graphic man- ‘ixer by Col. John ]?. Horan, com­ manding officer of Fort Crockett, and his officers and much of the glory and praise for the efficient manner in.which the situation was handled went to the Americaxi Red ■Cross, under whose jurisdiction the army and civilian, personnel served, he said. .“Radio contact was immediately made with the fourth army at Fort Sam Houston advising of­ ficials that all post and recruit­ ing personnel, civilian employees, fire department and ambulances were operating with the Red •Gross. . . / “The Fort Crockett hospital was immediately reopened with fifty Red Gross trained Galveston women in charge until the army medical detachment arrived . . . The Red Cross asked for litters and blankets to carry the wound­ ed and for 1,000 cots to be placed a t John Sealy, The United States Marine and St. Mary's hospitals. Canteens which were immediately set up by the Red Cross began operating and. one mobile unit, manned by Red Cross women vol­ unteers-went down into the dock area, moving near, the burning Monsanto plant to give coffee, and sandwiches to rescue squads and firefighters. Fear was for­ gotten, Col. Horan said, and .the women worked , . u n t i r i n g l y throughout the emergency. “Blankets, cots, sheets, mat­ tresses were furnished by thou­ sands to the Red Cross and dis­ tributed by them. . . . Col. Wilbur L. Plank, ordnance officer, was, . on the scene of action shortly after the explosion. He told .the correlation of the army efforts ' with the Red Cross, the army acting under the direction and in coordination with the disaster committee and its volunteer heads. . . . A pool of enlisted men was formed a t city hall. . . . and „operated on request of the Red Cross for moving supplies, blan­ kets and other necessities to the area. “Throughout the e x t r em * emergency the army was on ca of the Red Cross and only relin* quished its activities When trained personnel arrived.” Estate Appraisal . .Appraisal of the estate of How­ ard M. Fairchild in probate court listed, the gross value a t $6,009.75 .deductions, $5,868.76; net value, $140. 99. We Are Now Building (under the authority of the Park Board) AT THE CEDARVILLE COMMUNITYPARK This Concrete Swimming Pool is being built to the specifications of the State Engineer, and the State Department of Health. After it is completed and the construction debt retired, the profits made at the pool will go directly tothe park board to finance other park .projects. For the past few weeks, the rainy weather has held up the construction work, but if.no more such delays are encountered it should open on JULY WENEED A s this is a public project and not for profit, w e are attempting to keep the cost as low as possible. Therefore w e are asking for volunteers to help w ith the construction work. Several groups and individuals have already agreed to assist us on this. Any organization or persons w illing to help should coritact us at once. In order to pay th e costs of materials many money, ra ising :even ts w i l l .b e scheduled, .the first of which is to be a Boxing Show that w ill be held in the near Juture. Watch the Cedar- v ille Herald for the date o f this and o th er bene­ fits. J < • Anyone desiring to make a contribution to the fund for th e building o f the. pool should .eon- r tact us. ,$#r..v:br *-••1 • 0 VINCENT RIGID Phone 64541 Gedarville, Ohio