ID) — ~24

lornajarrettblanchard December 20, 1933

–24 United Press. “24 Die in Northwest.” Wisconsin State Journal, Madison. 12-27-1933, p. 1.[1]

–19 AP. “Natural Dam Gives Way; 4 are Buried in Mud Avalanche. Daily News-Record, 12-26-1933, 1.[2]

–17 Blanchard tally of deaths noted by State and locality below. (16-17)

–15 AP. “Storm Conditions in Northwest Continue Extremely Perilous,” 12-25-1933, p. 1.

–14 Taylor, G. H. and R. R. Hatton. Oregon Weather Book: A State of Extremes. 1999, p. 97.

–13 Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Weather Offers Relief.” 12-23-1933, p. 2.[3]

–12 Bakersfield Californian. “Man, Wife Drowned,” 12-23-1933, p. 11.

–10 UP, Portland. “10 Lose Lives in Northwest Area,” Bakersfield Californian, 12-22-1933, p1.

— 8 Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Streams Still Up.” 12-22-1933, p. 3.

— 4 AP. “Deluge and Winds Returning in Fury,” Helena Independent, MT, 12-21-1933, , p. 1.[4]

— 3 AP, Seattle. “Thousands of Acres Under Flood Water,” Brownsville Herald, TX, 12-20-1933, 20.

Idaho ( 1)

–1 St. Maries, ~Dec 26. Drowning; male, 34; canoe upset in attempt to retrieve belongings.[5]

Oregon ( >5) (We only have data on 16 of 24 deaths, thus there were possibly more.)

–4 Clatskanie area, Dec 25. Landslide hits house killing father and three children.[6]

–1 Portland, Dec 22. Cause of “storm death” not noted.[7]

Washington (10-11)

–1-2 Aberdeen, Dec 21. Car goes off west approach to Heron St. bridge into 30 feet of water.[8]

— 1 Bellingham area, ~Dec 20. Male (Richard Hillaire), 50, killed by a falling tree.[9]

— 1 Kent, Dec 22. Drowning. Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Weather Offers Relief.” 12-23-1933, 2.[10]

— 1 Port Angeles. Drowning, ~Dec 20, Nicky Fumar (a child).[11]

— 2 Renton, King County, Dec 24. Water/landslide buries two women in house.[12]

— 1 Snoqualmie area, ~Dec 20. Male (Sam Brewer), 19, killed by falling tree.[13]

— 1 Snoqualmie Pass highway, Dec 21. Unidentified motorist killed by falling tree.[14]

— 2 Yakima Valley, Dec 22. Drownings; couple in their flooding home.[15]

Cause of Death (16-17)[16]

Drownings (>6-7)

— 1 St. Maries, ID, ~Dec 26. Drowning; male, 34; canoe upset in attempt to retrieve belongings.

–1-2 Aberdeen, WA, Dec 21. Car goes off Heron Street bridge into 30 feet of water.

— 1 Kent, WA, Dec 22. Drowning. Centralia Daily Chronicle. “Weather Offers Relief.” 12-23-1933, 2.

— 1 Port Angeles, WA, ~Dec 20. Drowning; Nicky Fumar (a child).

— 2 Yakima Valley, WA, Dec 22. Drownings; couple in their flooding home.

Falling Trees ( 3)

–1 Bellingham area, WA, ~Dec 20. Male (Richard Hillaire), 50, killed by a falling tree.

–1 Snoqualmie area, WA, ~Dec 20. Male (Sam Brewer), 19, killed by falling tree.

–1 Snoqualmie Pass highway, WA, Dec 21. Unidentified motorist killed by falling tree.

Slides ( >6)

–4 Clatskanie area, OR, Dec 25. Landslide hits house killing father and three children.

–2 Renton, King County, WA, Dec 24. Water/landslide buries two women in house.

Not Noted ( 1)

–1 Portland, OR, Dec 22. Cause of “storm death” not noted.

Narrative Information

Taylor and Hatton: “Northern Oregon, Washington, Idaho, British Columbia. Dec. 21-24, 1933…This flood began because of intense warm rains and a collapsing lake on a lava field. Heavy snows had accumulated in the mountains early in winter and a huge storm from the Pacific brought massive quantities of warm rain and winds. In Pendleton temperatures reached 65°F and in Portland they were at 58°F. Various bridges were washed out and many dikes were broken. Several farms were completely covered with water. On the 22^nd the Willamette River rose 2.2 feet, to a height of 18.4 feet, in a 24-hour period; the Columbia rose 1.2 feet. The Clatskanie River set a record for its height. Big Creek, in Kellogg, rose 30 feet in one night because of a dam that formed during a slide; on Thurman street between 50 and 60 yards of dirt were left due to a slide. Conditions such as this closed many highways. At one time two hundred families were without food and shelter. Many people considered this the worst flood in several years, as fourteen people died and fifteen cities were partially or completely submerged.” (Taylor, G. H. and R. R. Hatton. Oregon Weather Book: A State of Extremes. 1999, p. 97.)

Newspapers

Dec 21: “Aberdeen, Dec. 21.–(AP)–A light closed car believed to contain two people crashed off the west approach to the Heron street bridge at noon today and vanished in 30 feet of water. Diving equipment was being brought to the scene this afternoon in an effort to raise the machine….Witnesses…said there was one man in the machine, others insisted they saw two. The car, supposedly traveling fairly fast, plunged through a heavy wooden gate, shearing it off as if it had been sawed.

“The Skookumchuck river overflowed its south bank in the northwest part of Centralia this morning, inundating a large area in that section. The water flowed down J street, making First street impassable to traffic, and continued south across Main street. From that point it was carried away by China ditch….” (Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “River Out of Banks.” 12-21-1933, p. 1.)

Dec 22: “Portland, Ore., Dec 22.–Ten persons were known dead, property damage was estimated in the millions and thousands of persons had been driven from their homes today as the worst rain storm in the Pacific northwest’s history continued into its sixth day. Lowland sections of Washington and Oregon were under water. Countless roads were blocked. Telephone lines were still down to many sections from last Sunday’s hurricane.

“Thousands of men will be given employment repairing flood damage when the storms and flood abate. CWA and CCC forces have been pressed into service in many places to aid flood-stricken victims.

“The town of Woodland, Wash., was almost all under water. The gravest situation faced Kelso, Wash., where the Cowlitz river today was breaking over the dike, weakened to such an extent that apprehension for safety of residents of the town was felt keenly.

“Hundreds were homeless in the Grays Harbor country, on both sides of the Columbia river, at the extreme eastern edge of the city of Portland and numerous other low sections of the northwest. For a time today highway travel was blocked north, east and west from Portland….” (UP, Portland. “10 Lose Lives in Northwest Area,” Bakersfield Californian, 12-22-1933, p. 1.)

Dec 23: “Kelso, Dec 23–(AP)–Cowlitz county awoke this morning to find its lowlands inundated still further, its losses mounting hourly, and the number of homes evacuated and deserted because of flood waters increasing at an alarming rate despite two stirring victories won against old man river last night.

“The Cowlitz is roaring along at a stage in excess of 21 feet, which is two feet higher than it was Friday morning, seven feet over flood stage, and six feet higher than the level of the main business district of Kelso.

“Four serious breaks occurred in dikes of the county overnight, three at Kelso. A dike on the east bank of the Cowlitz south of Kelso gave way, flooding 50 homes and forming one vast lake between the Cowlitz and Coweeman rivers. A break 500 feet long occurred in the Coweeman dike, protecting Kelso from flood waters of that stream. This inundated scores of homes and small farms, a golf course and the high school athletic field. Workers hastily threw up a sandbag dike four feet high and 1,000 feet long to protect the business district.

“The Northern Pacific railway bed north of the Kelso city limits sprang a serious leak early in the evening. Through a hole 10 feet wide gallons of water poured in from the Cowlitz to flood approximately 120 homes in a new flood sector of North Kelso. Two railroad work trains dumped rock into the crevasses, while CWA[17] men sandbagged the track and appeared to have stemmed the influx of water.

“At Woodland, major disaster point in the county, a 1,000-foot section of the elevated track gave way yesterday evening. Through this hole water from the flooded section of the city swept over a 1,500-acre section of farming land, driving a score or more of farmers from their homes. All families were rescued in boats and given refuge at the railroad depot.

“The Red Cross and state relief agencies are feeding refugees at Woodland, north and south Kelso and Lexington. A soup kitchen has been established at Kelso. One hundred and fifty flood victims from the Lexington area have been sent to the Cherry Hacol farm located on the elevated land north of the flood section….

“Castle Rock is battling the flood in common with other Cowlitz towns. Between 30 and 60 homes are under water.

“A large bridge on the Kalama river went out yesterday afternoon…

…Many market and county roads are covered with slides. Dairy cattle are drowned at Lt Lexington…Kelso faced new disaster as flood waters broke through late this morning upon more than 200 homes in south Kelso.

“The newest area to be inundated is the same which was caught by the disastrous flood of last June. The flood broke when a section of the Pacific highway, holding back waters which had previously filled in from a break in the Coweeman river dike partially collapsed. The pavement on the highway tipped, permitting water to flow through at a rapid rate. Herman Parrott, mayor of Kelso. Who was at the scene, was authority for the statement that the volume of water pouring over the highway is sufficient to flood the entire south Kelso district, even if the highway does not completely collapse.” (Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “River on Rampage,” 12-23-1933, pp. 1 & 2.)

Dec 23: “Seattle, Dec. 23.–(AP) — The weatherman brought the perfect Christmas gift to the water-soaked Pacific Northwest today — colder temperatures to stem the tide of floods which devastated the country, killing 13 and making thousands homeless.

“General relief was felt in Washington, Oregon and British Columbia, although traffic by rail and motor was still almost paralyzed in western Washington, 15 cities and towns were inundated in whole or in part, scores more were isolated except to airplanes, and some rivers kept on rising, adding to flood damage already of tremendous extent….

“All rail traffic into Puget Sound, except from Vancouver, B.C. and Grays Harbor, was blocked by slides and washouts, and railroads and they did not expect to operate much between eastern and western Washington for two days. In central Washington traffic was blocked and hundreds of travelers were marooned. In north Idaho floods thundering down from the mountains, wrecking houses as they came, shattered communications and isolated the Coeur D’Alene mining cities of Wallace, Mullen, Kellogg and Burke for a time.

“British Columbia reported conditions much better after earth slides and inundations had wrecked havoc with rail and motor traffic, but communications were seriously crippled.

“Three deaths from the floods were reported last night, bringing the toll to 13 dead and many injured. Mr. and Mrs. Joe Wojeiechowski were drowned at their flooded home in the Yakima valley of Washington, and William Dall was drowned at Kent.

“Hundreds of houses and stores were abandoned, and at many points a score of men, women and children would be found packed into a single upper room when relief workers in motorboats came to bring food. Many schools closed, and two hospitals were evacuated.

“Weather bureaus at Portland and Seattle predicted definite and immediate relief, with colder weather and no rain in sight. It had rained steadily for six days, breaking rainfall records and flood stages of rivers.

“Air travel boomed in western Washington and Oregon, the United Air Lines at Seattle reported it was operating planes to Portland almost on an hourly basis, with hundreds waiting for passage. Bert Hall, veteran U.A.L. pilot flying the route, reported the whole country was in inland sea — ‘more water than I have ever seen before.’ ‘Down below,’ he said. ‘villages were pitifully poking the tops of houses above vast sheets of water and many barns were submerged or floating. I saw one herd of about 250 frightened cattle huddled on a knoll with nothing but water in sight for miles around them. Occasionally, on a highway, an automobile would be creeping along, throwing a high spray of flood water like a boat’s prow.’” (Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Weather Offers Relief.” 12-23-1933, p. 2.)

Sources

Associated Press. “Deluge and Winds Returning in Fury,” Helena Independent, MT, 12-21-1933, , p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/helena-independent-record-dec-21-1933-p-1/

Associated Press, Seattle. “Four Killed in Landslide from Floods in West.” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-26-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/lincoln-nebraska-state-journal-dec-26-1933-p-1/

Associated Press, Seattle, Dec 23. “Icy Winds Stem Floods in Northwest.” Syracuse Herald, NY, 12-24-1933, p. 5. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/syracuse-herald-dec-24-1933-p-5/

Associated Press, Clatskanie, OR. “Natural Dam Gives Way; 4 are Buried in Mud Avalanche. Daily News-Record, Harrisonburg, VA, 12-26-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/harrisonburg-daily-news-record-dec-26-1933-p-1/

Associated Press. “New Drowning Adds to Death List in Floods.” Salt Lake Tribune, UT, 12-28-1933, p. 2. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/salt-lake-tribune-dec-28-1933-p-1/

Associated Press, Aberdeen, Dec 21. “River Out of Banks. Northwest Part of City Inundated by Overflow of Skookumchuck.” Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA, 12-21-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-22-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/centralia-daily-chronicle-dec-21-1933-p-1/

Associated Press. “Storm Conditions in Northwest Continue Extremely Perilous,” Bakersfield Californian, 12-25-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bakersfield-californian-dec-25-1933-p-1/

Associated Press, Seattle. “Thousands of Acres Under Flood Water,” Brownsville Herald, TX, 12-20-1933, 20. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/brownsville-herald-dec-20-1933-p-20/

Bakersfield Californian. “13 Killed By Storm and 5000 Homeless,” 12-23-1933, p. 11. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bakersfield-californian-dec-23-1933-p-11/

Bakersfield Californian. “Man, Wife Drowned,” 12-23-1933, p. 11. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bakersfield-californian-dec-23-1933-p-11/

Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “River on Rampage,” 12-23-1933, p. 2. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/centralia-daily-chronicle-dec-23-1933-p-2/

Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Streams Still Up.” 12-22-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-22-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/centralia-daily-chronicle-dec-22-1933-p-1/

Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Weather Offers Relief.” 12-23-1933, p. 2. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/centralia-daily-chronicle-dec-23-1933-p-2/

Taylor, George H. and Raymond R. Hatton. Oregon Weather Book: A State of Extremes. Corvallis: Oregon Sate University Press, 1999.

United Press, Portland, OR. “10 Lose Lives in Northwest Area,” Bakersfield Californian, 12-22-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/bakersfield-californian-dec-22-1933-p-1/

United Press. “24 Die in Northwest.” Wisconsin State Journal, Madison. 12-27-1933, p. 1. Accessed 7-23-2018 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/madison-wisconsin-state-journal-dec-27-1933-p-1/

[1] “The death toll of the floods and storms of the Pacific northwest today was set at 24 and damage at $20,000,000. Authorities were fearful of additional deaths due to continued heavy landslides and snowslides which have taken eight lives since Sunday [24^th].”

[2] “The death toll for the floods in the Pacific Northwest states stood at 19 with possibility it might be increased when debris is cleared in numerous slides.”

[3] Another Dec 23 report notes: “Thee deaths from the floods were reported last night [Dec 22], bringing the total to 13 dead and many injured.” (Associated Press, Seattle, Dec 23. “Icy Winds Stem Floods in Northwest.” Syracuse Herald, NY, 12-24-1933, p. 5.)

[4] Added to list of three tree fall (2) and drowning deaths noted the day before, is the death of a motorist by tree fall.

[5] Associated Press. “New Drowning Adds to Death List in Floods.” Salt Lake Tribune, UT, 12-28-1933, p. 2.

[6] “Four names were added to the list of dead in the storm ridden Pacific northwest as flood waters, pent up by a natural dam, were unloosed in sudden fury in a small creek bed near Clatskanie, Ore. A man and his three children were crushed to death, their residence buried in a mass of mud, rocks, and logs. The Christmas day tragedy was the most serious reported during the holiday in the flooded and storm swept area. Milo Allen, his son, George, and two small children were the victims.” AP, Seattle “Four Killed in Landslide from Floods in West.” Nebraska State Journal, Lincoln, 12-26-1933, p. 1.

[7] Bakersfield Californian. “13 Killed By Storm and 5000 Homeless,” 12-23-1933, p. 11.

[8] AP, Aberdeen. “River Out of Banks.” Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA, 12-21-1933, p. 1.

[9] Associated Press, Seattle. “Thousands of Acres Under Flood Water,” Brownsville Herald, TX, 12-20-1933, 20.

[10] Another report notes: “At Kent last night, William Dail, 28, fell from a trestle into the Green river while hurrying home and drowned.” (Bakersfield Californian. “13 Killed By Storm and 5000 Homeless,” 12-23-1933, p. 11.)

[11] Associated Press, Seattle. “Thousands of Acres Under Flood Water,” Brownsville Herald, TX, 12-20-1933, 20.

[12] “The toll of the week’s storms over the northwest reached 15 yesterday when two women were buried in a landslide near Renton, after flood waters had burst through a natural dam and hurtled down on a farm house. The victims were Mrs. Marie Peterson, 58, and Mrs. Mary Antone, 50, a visitor.” (AP. “Storm Conditions in Northwest Continue Extremely Perilous,” Bakersfield Californian, 12-25-1933, p. 1.)

[13] Associated Press, Seattle. “Thousands of Acres Under Flood Water,” Brownsville Herald, TX, 12-20-1933, p. 20.

[14] Associated Press. “Deluge and Winds Returning in Fury,” Helena Independent, MT, 12-21-1933, , p. 1.

[15] Victims identified as Mr. and Mrs. Joe Wojciechowski. (Centralia Daily Chronicle, WA. “Weather Offers Relief,” 12-23-1933, p. 2.)

[16] Of the 24 reported deaths we have seen references to 16-17 specific deaths (one car into water event ambiguous).

[17] Civil Works Administration.