1954 — June 25-26, Hurricane Alice hits so. of Brownsville; flash flooding, Ozona, TX/19–21

–21 Blanchard tally of locality breakouts below.
–17 Dunn, Gordon E. and Banner I. Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes (Revised). 1964, p. 324.
–17 Roth, David (NWS). Texas Hurricane History. Jan 17, 2010 update, p. 9.
Breakouts of fatalities by locality
— 1 Del Rio area west. Bridge over Pecos River “went out.” Pvt. Roy Christianson killed.
–19 Ozona flash flood (including heart attack death attributed to flash flood crisis). Blanchard.
–16 Ozona (and 1 missing).
–12 (plus six missing). Amarillo Globe-Times, TX. “11,000 Flee Raging Rio.” 6-29-1954, p. 1.
–1 Janice Bidlack. Body recovered.
–1 Francis Bidlack, 11. Missing. (Listed dead June 30)
–1 Gary Bidlack. 20-months. Body recovered.
–2 David Eugene Clapp, 3, and Dona Jean Clapp, 14. Bodies recovered.
–1 Dona Jean Clapp, 14, of Tulsa. Body recovered.
–2 Mrs. Mary Golden, 25 and Larry Dean Golden, 5. Bodies recovered.
–1 Mabel Ruth Holley, 28. Body recovered.
–1 14-month-old daughter of Mabel Ruth Holley. Missing. [Probable mistake.]
–1 Harry P. Holley, 14 months. Body recovered.
–1 Donna Jefferies, 11 months, of Dundee. Body recovered.
–1 Harold Jefferies [or Jeffers ], 2, of Dundee. Missing.
–1 Grover C. Martin, 73. Body recovered.
–1 Hazel Mauney (or Maundey ), 55. Body recovered.
–1 William Tate, 76. Body recovered.
–1 Unidentified female, about 3. Body recovered.
–1 Unidentified Mexican child, about 5. Body recovered.
–1 Mrs. Betty Jeffers, 20, mother of Donna and Harold, died in hospital, June 30.
–1 Heart attack reported as attributed to the crisis of the early morning sudden flood.
— 1 Pharr, Hidalgo Co. Electrocuted. Mrs. Emelia Salinis, 39, outside home contact with wire.

Mexico
— 1 Matamoros. Electrocution. Salvador Villarreal, 47, wind-downed line falls on auto.
–38 Piedras Negras. AP. “South Texas Area Is Disaster Zone.” Paris News, TX. 7-1-1954, p. 1.
–20 Piedras Negras. Statement of Dr. Rodrigo Andalon, chief of hospital at Piedras Negras.

Narrative Information

Holland/Weather Bureau, Monthly Weather Review: “….Heavy rains began in the Rio Grande Valley on June 25 when Hurricane Alice entered the Gulf Coast south of Brownsville, Tex. …These rains progressed up the valley and, although lasting only abut a day or two at any location…they produced the greatest floods of record on the Rio Grande….

Roth: “June 25-27th, 1954 (Alice): The first storm with a woman’s name in the Atlantic Basin, Alice developed rapidly south of Brownsville. It made landfall about 24 hours after formation. Most residents did not know about it until it struck their area. Heavy rains near Langtry resulted in 24.07″ of rain at Pandale. Rains of 12-21″ over a short period of time plagued Comstock, Sonora, and Sheffield. This caused the greatest rise on the Rio Grande since 1865. The river rose 30-60 feet at Eagle Pass and Laredo. An 86 foot high wall of water rushed down the Pecos River washed out a bridge normally 50 feet above it. The International Bridge at Laredo was also washed out. A bulk of the death and destruction occurred in Mexico. Five shrimp boats were beached. Seventeen casualties [fatalities] in Texas were the result of Alice.” (Roth. Texas Hurricane History. Jan 17, 2010 update, p. 48.)

Newspapers

June 26, United Press: “Brownsville, Tex., June 26 – UP – Alice, the first hurricane of the year, rained itself out Saturday [26th] in Mexico and the Rio Grande Valley. Two deaths, a score of injuries and heavy property and crop damage were blamed on the hurricane.

“The storm formed so close to Mexico’s Gulf coast early Friday it didn’t have time to generate much force before it came inland some 75 miles south of Brownsville.

“Weathermen said Alice’s after-effects would cause rains later Saturday as far west as El Paso, 800 miles up the Rio Grande from Brownsville. Rains up to five inches fell in the fertile Lower Rio Grande Valley, Friday night, causing much damage to cotton. Picking already has begun and farmers said an eight to a third of the crop was open both sides of the international river. Some cotton was blown out of open bolls, and mud and water splashed on some, lowering the grade.”
(United Press. “Alice Is All Tuckered Out. But First Hurricane Takes 2 Lives.” Baytown Sun, TX, 6-26-1954, p. 1.)

June 26, Corpus Christi Times: “Residents of the small town of Oilton, near Mirando City, 35 miles east of Laredo, were being evacuated today after a storm dumped 8.46 inches of rain on the area. Oilton has a population of only 150. Two blocks were under water early today and residents were being evacuated as the water reached into their homes. U.S. Highway 59 from Laredo to Hebbronville was under water at San Juanito Creek, which went on a rampage.

“Winds described as of near tornadic force whipped through Mirando City near Laredo late last night, ripping off or damaging the roofs of 50 to 60 small houses or garages, but no one was injured.

“Thunderstorms accompanied by more moderate winds brought heavy rains to the Corpus Christi area also last night and early this morning….

“The rains followed Hurricane Alice, which struck the Mexican coast south of Brownsville yesterday morning….” (Corpus Christi Times, TX. “Storm Backlash Brings Heavy Rains to Coast. Tornadic Winds Rip Mirando City.” 6-26-1954, p. 1.)

June 29: “Laredo, Texas, June 29 – Mighty floods that have left 19 persons dead or missing and washed at least 11,000 out of their homes rushed pell-mell down the Rio Grande Tuesday, toward the twin cities of Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, where a total of nearly 87,000 persons live. Laredo, being higher than Nuevo Laredo on the Mexican side, was not expected to be as hard hit….

“The Rio Grande was expected to crest at Laredo between 6 AM and noon Wednesday at 55 to 60 feet, the highest in history. The previous record was 52 feet in 1932….

“At Ozona, Tex., northwest of Laredo, 12 persons were dead and six were missing. Another person died at Ozona, of a heart attack inducted by the excitement of the flood. Ozona was hit suddenly at 4 a.m. Monday after a 12-inch cloudburst. It suffered more damage than any city in Texas. The civil defense office said 100 homes were destroyed. 100 more suffered major damage and 150 suffered minor damage. Thirty business buildings suffered major damage and 20 suffered minor damage. One thousand to fifteen hundred persons had to flee. But water, light and telephone service were restored to Ozona Tuesday and the flood drained away almost as fast as it came….”
(Amarillo Globe-Times. “11,000 Flee Raging Rio. 19 Persons Dead or Missing.” 6-29-1954, p. 1.)

Sources

Abilene Reporter News. “Flood (continued from page 1-A).” 6-30-1954, p. 3. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/abilene-reporter-news-jun-30-1954-p-3/

Amarillo Globe-Times, TX. “11,000 Flee Raging Rio. 19 Persons Dead or Missing.” 6-29-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/amarillo-globe-times-jun-29-1954-p-1/

Associated Press. “Flood Death Toll Mounting.” Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. 6-30-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/corsicana-daily-sun-jun-30-1954-p-1/

Associated Press. “South Texas Area Is Disaster Zone.” Paris News, TX. 7-1-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/paris-news-jul-01-1954-p-1/

Big Spring Daily Herald, TX. “Floods (continued from page 1).” 6-30-1954, p. 12. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/big-spring-daily-herald-jun-30-1954-p-12/

Corpus Christi Times, TX. “Storm Backlash Brings Heavy Rains to Coast. Tornadic Winds Rip Mirando City.” 6-26-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/corpus-christi-times-jun-26-1954-p-1/

Dunn, Gordon E. and Banner I. Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes (Revised Edition). Baton Rouge LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1964, 377 pages.

Holland, Joshua A. “The Weather and Circulation of June 1954, Illustrating the Birth and Growth of a Continental Anticyclone.” Weather Bureau. Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 82, Issue 6, June 1954, pp. 163-171. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/mwre/82/6/mwre.82.issue-6.xml

Roth, David (National Weather Service). Texas Hurricane History. Camp Springs, MD: NWS. 1-17-2010 update. Accessed 11-22-2017 at: http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/research/txhur.pdf
Also 9-25-2022 at: https://www.weather.gov/media/lch/events/txhurricanehistory.pdf

United Press. “Alice Is All Tuckered Out. But First Hurricane Takes 2 Lives.” Baytown Sun, TX, 6-26-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/baytown-sun-jun-26-1954-p-1/

United Press. “The Known Dead.” Amarillo Globe Times, 6-29-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/amarillo-globe-times-jun-29-1954-p-1/

United Press. “Two Dead, Damage Light in Gulf Storm.” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, TX, 6-26-1954, p. 1. Accessed 9-25-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/lubbock-morning-avalanche-jun-26-1954-p-1/

Young, Sam. “The Ozona Flood.” Web page accessed 9-25-2022 at: http://www.sam-diane.com/ozonaflood.html