When doctors and physicians arrived from the nearest towns of Akron and Flagler, they found everything demolished, with bodies scattered about. Immediate survivors were taken to nearby farmhouses to receive care for their injuries.
Initially, 10 of the 18 people at the Kuhns house were killed, with nine of them being children. The remaining eight people in the home suffered varying degrees of injuries. Henry Kuhns lost his wife, Maggie, and two of his children, Delmar and Stella. Of the guest families, Frederick Garrett was left to mourn both children, Opal and Zelda. Joseph Yoder and his wife Belva lost all four of their children, Blanche, Ray, Robert, and Vera. Young Nellie Birky, daughter of Reverend Amos Birky, also passed away. Left with arguably the worst disaster in Washington County’s history, the community grieved for those lost in an outdoor funeral. It was the largest gathering locals could recall, attracting more than 1,000 people who paid their respects to the victims.
Four months later, Leola Inatha Braman Garrett, the mother of Opal and Zelda, died from her injuries on December 13th, bringing the total number of deaths to eleven. According to a Brush Tribune article published on December 26, 1924, Leola had been taken to the Denver hospital for treatment after suffering from a deep scalp wound, a dislocated hip, and many bruises from the tornado on August 10th. During her recovery, she had developed a bone disease which could not be overcome.
There were no additional fatalities or injuries aside from those on the Kuhns farmstead. To this day, this tornado remains the deadliest in Colorado state history.
We discovered a narrative written in the Oregon Mennonite Historical and Genealogical Society by Neil Birky in April 2005. He was a distant cousin to Amos Birky and his father, Reverend Nicholas Birky, served at the Thurman Mennonite Church from 1918-1935. Neil was only two years old when the tornado hit but recalled details passed down to him.
2 Comments
Paul Acosta · October 10, 2022 at 9:21 pm
Thanks so much for finally sharing a story from Colorado!! This was actually south of my town about 35 miles.
Jen Narramore · October 11, 2022 at 5:28 pm
Hi Paul! Thank you so much for your comment! I am so glad we finally got a Colorado story done as well and that was a big one! Thanks for all of your support!! – Jen