Tornado Enters The City
The Omaha tornado followed the path of Little Papillion Creek as it entered the city. It moved through the west side of town alongside the Missouri Pacific Railroad, destroying the small workers cottages in the area. The tornado was so strong that steel train cars were later found pierced by pieces of shattered lumber from the demolished homes.
By the time the tornado reached Dewey Avenue it was five blocks wide. When it reached Farnam Hill the twister followed a shallow valley through this upscale neighborhood. The large mansions of Farnam were no match for the winds, and many houses were torn to pieces, along with several in the Gold Coast Historic District including the Joslyn Castle, which sustained considerable damage. Buildings were found chopped in half, pipes and supports dangling into space, such as the Duchesne Academy that was nearly obliterated.
At North 24th and Lake Streets in the Near North Side neighborhood a large African American crowd was enjoying an Easter Sunday performance when the tornado flattened the building and killed more than two dozen people. Other brick structures in this small commercial district took similar hits, and more people died here than in any other part of Omaha.
A streetcar running down North 24th Street in North Omaha encountered the tornado near this area. Thanks to the quick actions of operator Ord Hensley, every passenger on the streetcar survived. Later, photographers would spot the wrecked machine and would call it the "Streetcar of Death," imagining that no one on board could have survived given the immense damage.
The F4 tornado skirted the downtown area and moved over the Missouri River into Council Bluffs. By this time it was losing steam, and although Council Bluffs sustained damage, it escaped the destruction the tornado had brought to Omaha.
The only warning anyone had was a sudden and sharp fall of barometric pressure and temperature. Few had time to seek shelter.
Read more about this topic: 1913 Omaha Easter Sunday Tornado
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—Jean Baudrillard (b. 1929)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
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