Sabine Lake overflowed its banks and inundated Port Arthur, flooding all one-story buildings; one street was submerged under of water. Residents sought refuge in the upper floors of the city's main buildings. An oil refinery in the western part of the city was flooded with of water, leaving its 150 workers stranded atop the site's buildings. At the height of the storm on the morning of August 17, winds reached in Port Arthur, lasting nearly two hours before subsiding. Strong winds blew away an entire telephone station. Beaumont lost all telecommunication capabilities, including service to over 1,500 telephones. The Southwestern Telegraph and Telephone Company estimated at least $50,000 in damage was dealt to its assets in the city. A Catholic church, frame buildings, and a grandstand were destroyed, while hundreds of windows were blown out by the hurricane. The city also lost all power during the night of landfall. With the exception of one, all oil derricks at the Sour Lake oilfield were destroyed. The surge pushed a 50,000-barrel oil tank inland into Nederland. Winds reached in Sabine Pass, where six people were killed; another three were killed in Beaumont. Widespread damage amounting to $25,000 occurred in Orange. Six smokestacks at a paper mill collapsed, damaging roofing below. Other factory smokestacks around the city also collapsed, damaging adjacent structures. Several ships held at port were damaged and some sank. Elsewhere in the southeastern Texas counties of Jefferson and Liberty, strong winds blew down corn, cotton, and rice crops, accounting for most of the damage in those counties.