|
1889 Flood
|
1942 Flood
|
1946 Flood
|
1959 Flood
|
|
72
FLOOD of Eldred
June 22 - 27, 1972 |
 |
Prior to the third week in June, 1972, as far as the people
of Eldred were concerned, the name Agnes was immediately associated
with a lady who worked at our local bank. But, in days that followed,
the news media informed the country that a tropical storm spawned
in the Mid-Atlantic was headed for the east coast of Florida. |
| On Wednesday morning at approximately 5:30 a.m., the people of
the community were awakened by the roar of the rushing water and the
heavy rains. At 6:30 a.m., James Leffler, the Borough Council President,
was called, asking that he not to work because it was felt that there
might be another flood comparable to that of July 1942. Most of the
morning was spent in trying to assess the damage by Hurricane Agnes
and what should be done to restore sewers and streets to normal. At
about 11:00 a.m., the rain reduced to a mere sprinkle and the water
in Barden Brook creek subsided with necessary arrangements having
been made and threat of a major flood passed. The lull in the storm was very brief, however, by 2:00 p.m., the rains began once more and continued for four days as though determined to create a flood like we never experienced before. By noon on Thursday, June 22, residents of Railroad Avenue and many of South Main Street had already evacuated their homes. The evacuation was to continue for the next three days as mmore homes were surrounded by water. Many who had only moved contents from cellars to the first floor now had to re-enter their homes and move belongings to the second floor or to higher ground. Saturday, June 24, at 11:00 p.m., the water had already surpased the July 1942 flood levels and it continued to rise seventeen inches more until Sunday when it crested at 28 feet above normal. Pennsylvania's Governor activated the National Guard and about 50 soldiers of Bradford's Company A, First Battalion, 112th Infantry were in Eldred working with civil authorities maintaining law and order to prevent looting. Eldred had become virtually isolated by the flood waters and Army helicopters brought in food and aid for many days. The cleanup was unbelievable! Almost everyone was a willing worker and by 10:00 p.m., on Sunday, June 25, cleanup was completed in the Frisbee Insurance Building. Preparations had already begun for a temporary Post Office to open on Monday morning. For the next two weeks cleanup continued with the help of manpower and equipment from the surrounding communities and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. In these two weeks time, the major parts of the cleanup were completed. Shortly thereafter, the Ferris Annex building, Eldred Eagle Newspaper office and the old Marsh Furniture building were razed, all being a result of flood damages. Other buildings took on a new look both interior and exterior. Financial help was available from the Small Business Administration. A temporary office was set up in the Borough Council rooms to receive applications for disaster loans until October 30, 1972. |
|
Statistical Data
|
|
Amount of Rainfall TOTAL |
12.5 in $1,500,000 |
 Main Street |
 Main Street |
 National Guard helicopter landing at Frame's |
 King Street looking at Main Street |
 Behind Todd Motor Sales and Bank |
 Platt / Edson Street looking towards Main Street |
 Edson Street looking towards Slavin's Cafe |
 Behind Shield's Lumber looking south along tracks |
 Friday, Noon, June 23, 1972 |
 Thursday, 1:00 p.m., June 22, 1972 |
 Friday, 1:00 p.m., June 23, 1972 |
 Friday, 1:00 p.m., June 23, 1972 |
 Railroad Street, Thursday, June 22, 1972 |
 Friday, June 23, 1972 |
 Friday, June 23, 1972 |
 Friday, June 23, 1972 |
The Aftermath
