6 –211-229

lornajarrettblanchard August 18, 1955

— 310 Douglas. Hurricane. 1958, p. 317. [Do not use in tally – not supported by other sources.]
–211-229 Blanchard tally based upon state breakouts below.
— 207 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.
— 51 Connecticut [Death toll would reach 87.]
— 1 Delaware
— 23 Massachusetts — 4 New York — 2 Rhode Island
— 6 New Jersey –115 Pennsylvania — 2 Virginia
— ~200 Bogart. Floods of August-October 1955, New England to North Carolina. 1960.
— 200 Dunn and Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes (Revised edition). 1964, pp. 309-310.
— 200 Rappaport and Fernandez-Partagas. The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones. 1995.
— 200 Wolshon, Urbina and Levitan. National Review of Hurricane Evacuation Plans. 2001.
–184-200 NWS FO, Philadelphia/Mount Holly. “Historical Weather Facts…,” Oct 17, 2005.
— <200 Nese, Jon and Glenn Schwartz. The Philadelphia Area Weather Book. 2002, p. 144. -- 200 Schwartz, Rick. Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States. 2007, p. 215. -- 191 Gelber. The Pennsylvania Weather Book, 2006, 208. -- 188 AP. “Stunned Survivors Find Death Toll Mounting Toward 200 Mark…” 8-22-1955, p.1. -- 187 Sav. Natural Disasters. 1974, p. 22. -- 184 Barnes, Jay. Florida’s Hurricane History. UNC Press, 1998, p. 311. -- 184 Blake, et al. The Deadliest, Costliest, and Most Intense US Cyclones…, April 2007. -- 184 Hebert/Jarrell/Mayfield. The Deadliest, Costliest…[US] Hurricanes… Feb 1993, p80. -- 183 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, 1. -- 180 NWS NERFC. Historical Floods in the Northeast. “June 1982 Flooding in Conn..” -- 179 Geological Survey. Floods of August 1955 in the Northeastern States. 1966, p. 1. -- 176 AP. “U.S. Checks all Resources for Flood Aid.” Berkshire Eagle, Pittsfield MA. 8-24-1955, 1 -- 49 Connecticut (71 known missing) [Death toll would reach 87.] -- 13 Massachusetts -- 6 New Jersey --100 Pennsylvania -- 4 New York -- 1 Rhode Island -- 3 Virginia -- 100 Rappaport & Partagas. 1995. Summary of State Breakouts Connecticut ( 87) Delaware ( 1) Massachusetts ( 13) New Jersey ( 6) New York ( 4) Pennsylvania (97-113) Rhode Island ( 1 - 2) Virginia ( 2 - 3) Total: 211-229 Breakout of Fatalities by State Connecticut ( 87) --87 Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005 --77 NWS NERFC. Historical Floods in the Northeast. “June 1982 Flooding in Connecticut.” Breakout of Connecticut drowning deaths by locality (where noted): -- 2 Ansonia Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005 -- 1 Canaan Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 Canton Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 Colebrook Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 East Granby Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 1 East Hartford Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. --13 Farmington Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 1 Hartford Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 1 Litchfield Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 4 Naugatuck Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 8 New Hartford Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 Seymour Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 Simsbury Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 1 Stonington Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 1 Thomaston Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 6 Torrington Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 2 Washington Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. --29 Waterbury Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. -- 7 Winsted Leblanc, Jeanne A. “The Lost.” Hartford Courant, 8-2-2005. Delaware ( 1) --1 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1. Massachusetts (13) -- 23 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1. -- 13 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1. -- 13 Blanchard tally of 7 reported deaths in Central MA and six in Western MA. -- 11 AP. “State’s Loss in 9 Digits; 11 Dead.” Berkshire Eagle, Pittsfield, MA. 8-20-1955, p. 1. -->10 AP. “Floods Strand Throngs in Southern [NY].” Post-Standard, Syracuse. 8-20-1955, p.2.
— 7 Central Mass. Moulton. “Worcester devastation in 1955…” Telegram & Gazette, MA. 8-4-2017.
— 6 Western Mass. Pioneer Valley History Network’s Disasters. “Flood of 1955.”
— 5 Charlton. Store engulfed by “a 30-foot high wave.” AP. “State’s Loss…” 8-20-1955, p. 1.

New Jersey ( 6)
— 6 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1.
— 6 Gelber. The Pennsylvania Weather Book, 2006, 207.
— 6 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.
— 0 Bogart/USGS. Floods of Aug-Oct 1955, New England to North Carolina. 1960, p. 7.

New York ( 4)
–4 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1.
–4 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.
–1 Drowning. AP. “Floods Strand Throngs in Southern New York.” Post-Standard, Syracuse. 8-20-1955, p.1.
–1 Electrocution. AP. “Floods Strand Throngs in Southern New York.” Post-Standard, Syracuse. 8-20-1955, 1.

Pennsylvania (97-113)
— 115 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.
— 113 Longshore. Encyclopedia of Hurricanes, Typhoons, and Cyclones. 1998, 95.
— 101 Bogart/USGS. Floods of Aug-Oct 1955, New England to North Carolina 1960, p. 22.
— 100 AP. “U.S. Checks all Resources for Flood Aid.” Berkshire Eagle, Pittsfield MA. 8-24-1955, p1.
–~100 McCarthy. “200 Years…Susquehanna…,” Wyoming Valley Observer, 7-2-1972, 345.
— 97 Blanchard tally of 37 Camp Davis deaths, 10 at Greentown and 50 at Stroudsburg.
— 97 Graziano. “‘Great Flood Disaster of 1955’…” NJ.com. 8-20-2015, 1-17-2019 update.
— 93 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1.
— 93 AP. “Pennsylvania Death Toll is Set at 93.” Bedford Gazette, PA. 8-23-1955, p. 1.
Breakout of Pennsylvania drowning deaths by locality (where noted):
— 37 Camp Davis, Analomink, Brodhead Creek, Monroe Co. Schwartz 2007, p. 215; Bogart 22.
— 10 Greentown, East Branch Wallenpaupack Creek floodplain. Bogart/USGS 1960, p. 8.
–50-75 Stroudsburg area. Blanchard tally from sources below.
— 75 “ “ AP. “Eastern Penna. Death Toll Reaches 93.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, 1.
— 50 “ Douglas 1958, pp. 315-317.
–>30 “

Rhode Island (1-2)
–2 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.
–1 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1.
–1 Woonsocket. Electrocution. Man trying to remove a pump from his flooding cellar.

Virginia (2-3)
–3 AP. “Flood Destruction Widespread; 183 Dead.” Titusville Herald, PA, 8-22-1955, p. 1.
–2 UP. “Flood Ravaged Northeast Struggles…” Lowell Sun, MA. 8-26-1955, p. B1.

Narrative Information

Bogart/Geological Survey: “General Description of the August 18-19 Floods.

“The principal disaster of the flood and hurricane year of 1955 was the floods that swept the east coast from Massachusetts to North Carolina August 18-19. The floods occurred in a broad band generally concentric with the coastline, an area that includes the most populated and most intensively industrialized part of the United States. They affected directly or closely a population of 30 million persons. The casualty list was about 200 and property damage was nearly $500 million. The floods affected the entire country in one way or another….” (Bogart. Floods of August-October 1955, New England to North Carolina (Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 1420). 1960, pp. 15-16).

Douglas: “On the fourteenth… [Hurricane Diane] swung toward the exhausted coasts of South and North Carolina [which had just gone through Hurricane Connie]….

“But as Diane turned toward the mainland, its winds were diminished to thirty miles per hour. Rain, cataracts, avalanches, curtains, rivers of rain, cloudbursts, were let down abruptly for twenty-four hours over Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and New England. The earth, already saturated by Connie’s rains, could absorb no more. All the brooks, the streams, the rivers began to swell and rise.

“In the Pocono Mountains at Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, Broadhead Creek rose thirty feet in fifteen minutes, drowning fifty people who had already fled to what they thought was higher ground….

“On the night of August 18 in Connecticut, the Naugatuck, the Mad and Still rivers, the Connecticut, the Farmington and the Quinebaug…were rising faster and faster…. The Naugatuck’s gentle flow of 17,000 cubic feet per second was increased to 59,000, three and a half times greater. There was no adequate protection for the hundreds of towns and cities in the lower lands and river plains as the enormous dark volume of water rose out of the rivers over everything down to the Sound…. In Seymour and in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, the floods ripped coffins out of cemeteries and carried them downstream. In Putnam, Connecticut, the flood destroyed a magnesium plant and all that night hundreds of barrels of burning magnesium floated on the water in the streets, with metal bursting 250 feet in the air in white-hot flaming fountains….

“In Massachusetts, across the Concord River, the 50-foot span of the Old North Bridge where the Minute Men had defied the Redcoats, went down under crushing flood waters. Old buildings, old houses, strong old factories at the water’s edge, and people huddling on the roofs, were swept away from far beyond the river banks.

“In all more than 310 people died.” (Douglas 1958, pp. 315-317)

Dunn and Miller (1964, 221) note that “This hurricane was the greatest natural catastrophe, from the standpoint of damage, in the history of the United States and earned the unenviable distinction of being called the ‘first billion-dollar hurricane’. The deaths, about two hundred in number, and most of the damage resulted from floods produced by the torrential rains long after the winds had subsided.” (Dunn, Gordon E. and Banner I. Miller. Atlantic Hurricanes (Revised Edition). Baton Rouge LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1964, p. 221.)

Connecticut

National Weather Service Northeast River Forecast Center: “In little over a week, two hurricanes passed by Southern New England in August 1955 producing major flooding over much of the region. Hurricane Connie produced generally 4-6 inches of rainfall over southern New England on August 11 and 12. The result of this was to saturate the ground and bring river and reservoir levels to above normal levels.

“Hurricane Diane came a week later and dealt a massive punch to New England. Rainfall totals from Diane ranged up to nearly 20 inches over a two day period. The headwaters of the Farmington River in Connecticut recorded 18 inches in a 24-hour period. Both of these accumulations exceeded records for New England. The same is true of much of the flooding that resulted from these massive rainfall amounts.

“With the strong intensity rainfall on saturated soil, the rise of the rivers was very rapid. Even the coastal regions of Eastern Massachusetts — the Charles, Taunton, and Neponset Rivers — experienced dramatic and rapid rises. On the Blackstone River, dam breaks caused significant flooding and destruction in Woonsocket RI. The entire reach of the Quinebaug River set new flow records.

“In the Connecticut River valley, the most significant flows were experienced on the Chicopee, Westfield, and Farmington Rivers. However, on the mainstem, since the heaviest rainfalls did not reach far to the north and did not result in significant flows into Massachusetts, flooding, although significant, did not reach the record breaking volumes that occurred on the tributaries….

“While these hurricanes affected the entire Atlantic coast from North Carolina through Massachusetts, the state of Connecticut suffered the most damage. Of the 180 lives that were lost, 77 were in Connecticut. Of the 680 million dollars in property damage, over 350 million dollars occurred in Connecticut. Over 200 dams in New England suffered partial to total failure. Many of these were in the area immediately south of Worcester, in the Thames and Blackstone headwaters.” (NWS NERFC. Historical Floods in the Northeast. “June 1982 Flooding in Connecticut.”)

Massachusetts

Geological Survey: “On August 17 Diane entered North Carolina, curved northward across central Virginia and Maryland, and eastward across the extreme southeast corner of Pennsylvania and across central New Jersey and then out to sea on a line parallel to the coastline of Connecticut and Rhode Island. To the left of the hurricane track a maximum rainfall of 19.75 inches occurred August 17-20 at Westfield, Mass. Of the 287 gaging stations and crest-stage stations in the August 18-19 flood area, 129 showed discharges which exceeded the previous maxima of record….” (Bogart. Floods of August-October 1955, New England to North Carolina (Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 1420). 1960, p. 1).

Aug 20, AP: “Boston (AP) – A statewide mopping up operation and the job of feeding thousands of homeless posed the major problems today as the aftermath of the worst flood in Massachusetts history. There were 11 dead and several missing as damage mounted into hundreds of millions, but the danger from flooded rivers seemed to have passed.

“The Connecticut River crested at Holyoke last evening, short of flood level. Later at Springfield it rose only to 21.1 feet where flood stage is 28. It was dropping today under a warm sun.

“Five of the dead drowned under a 30-foot high wave that engulfed a store in Charlton. There was a severe food shortage in Charlton among homeless and stranded motorists.

“Thirty persons marooned overnight in Rochdale were evacuated this morning from their homes. The town of Oxford, where a dam broke yesterday, also had a keen shortage of food. Supplies being rushed there included only staples that required no cooking or heating as most of the flood area lacked power.

“In Charlton there were seven automobiles buried under flood waters. It was not known if they contained any occupants. A posse of 25 continued a search in the Charlton area for possible victims. Machinery from the Charlton Woolen Co. was strewn on the highway after its upper mill was wiped out.

“A large work crew pushed through the waters on flooded Route 20 – Boston to New York highway – near Oxford in efforts to open the much traveled road. Springfield, base of food supplies for western Massachusetts, reported warehouses had a four-weeks supply on hand, but the problem was one of distribution because of the clogged roads. All railroads were out in Springfield this morning.

“The Bay State was on emergency status. The area of high destruction was a wide band across the southern section of the state, including the large cities of Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke and Worcester and small towns from Sandisfield in the Berkshires to Blackstone on the Rhode Island line….

“Dams burst in Oxford, Hopedale and Southbridge….

“Throughout the ravaged area, the Red Cross set up emergency food stations equipped to feed thousands who were forced out of their homes.

“The state seized supplies of dry ice needed to preserve food in the stricken regions.

“The Federal Small Business Administration declared five western counties – Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire, Hampden and Worcester – disaster areas. They are eligible for special emergency loans….” (Associated Press. “State’s Loss in 9 Digits; 11 Dead.” Berkshire Evening Eagle, Pittsfield, MA. 8-20-1955, p. 1.)

Pennsylvania

Gelber, August 18-19, 1955: “Stream levels rose to dangerously high levels in the evening hours of August 18, as Diane made a right turn across southeastern Pennsylvania. Heavy rains pelted the eastern portion of the state, falling on wet ground saturated by Connie’s rainfall less than a week earlier. The main streams were already running high, so there was little room for the ensuing heavy runoff from the hills.

“Rainfall estimates on the order of 7.00 to 9.00 inches were reported in a six-hour period during the night of August 18-19. In northeastern Pennsylvania storm totals ranged from 6.00 to 12.00 inches in thirty hours. The heaviest amounts were reported in southeastern Lackawanna and southwestern Wayne Counties….

“Heavy runoff from mountain streams feeding northeastern Pennsylvania rivers led to the most destructive flooding since the region was settled in the late eighteenth century. Normally placid Pocono creeks (Brodhead, Pocono, Bushkill, McMichaels, and Scioto) would become raging torrents of water channeled through narrow passages.

“During the late-evening hours of August 18, 1955, a succession of dam failures released pent-up water and debris, sending the Brodhead on a rampage of death and destruction.

“Forth-seven unsuspecting vacationers at Camp Davis, situated on the banks of the Brodhead Creek five miles north of East Stroudsburg, were huddled in fourteen cottages waiting out the heavy rain. A swirling wall of water thirty feet high filled with uprooted pine trees, boulders, and debris was sweeping through the normally tranquil watercourse. In a few horrifying seconds, the cottages, housing mostly children and their mothers, were torn from their foundations and swept away. Thirty-eight people were killed.

As the waters rose, the campers left their cabins and gathered in the main building, a two-story frame structure. Another camp, Pine Brook, lay on higher ground a mere hundred yards distant, but the Camp Davis people underestimated their danger and stayed put. The turbulent waters continued to mount and the terrified campers were forced up to the second floor and then finally to the attic, where they huddled in the dark and prayed…Then the building disintegrated in a thirty-foot wall of water and all forty-six campers, most of them children, were swept away. Nine were later found alive, clinging to tree limbs or debris, or having been miraculously swept ashore. Some bodies were never recovered. (Dale 1996, 133 ).

“Water and debris tore through the Stroudsburg with little warning during late-evening hours of August 18. Unsuspecting bingo players in the Day Street fire hall were swept away as water tore the building apart, killing six people. A number of homes were also carried away in the thundering waters.

“The Civil Defense estimate of seventy-eight lives lost in Monroe and Pike Counties along and near the Delaware River makes it the single worst tragedy to strike the region. Twenty bridges were destroyed in Monroe County, including the bridge connecting Stroudsburg and East Stroudsburg. Portions of both towns were isolated by swirling waters that quickly overtook the ‘flats section along Brodhead Creek, which would expand in width to nearly a mile across….

“In Wayne County near Hawley, rising water consumed a dam where the Lackawaxen River merged with Middle Creek, taking two lives….

“The state storm summary reported that the Hurricane Flood of 1955, which affected 6,600 square miles, was ‘the most disastrous flood ever to strike eastern Pennsylvania.’ Many homes, bridges, and telephone poles were swept away by turbulent waters racing through narrow channels that spilled across roads and railroad lines. Navy and Marine helicopters manned by government and volunteer pilots airlifted hundreds of trapped victims to safety, saving countless lives.

“Despite many heroic efforts, the death toll from flooding in Pennsylvania was estimated around one hundred victims, including ten persons missing and presumed drowned. Additional deaths attributed to electrocutions, automobile accidents, and other flood-related calamities pushed the death toll to 113 in Pennsylvania (Longshore 1998, 95).” (Gelber. The Pennsylvania Weather Book, 2002, pp. 205-207.)

McCarthy: “Hurricane Diane, which blew into this region August 18, 1955, caused the death of about 100 persons in Northeastern Pennsylvania, most of them occurring in Monroe County. Again Duryea Borough, alongside the Lackawanna River, was hard hit by the torrential downpour and strong winds. Wilkes-Barre, Nanticoke, Newport Township, Ashley, Plymouth, Edwardsville, Pringle, Courtdale, Luzerne, and Swoyersville received much damage.

“Military helicopters came to the region and helped in the evacuation of many persons unable to otherwise escape the storm’s wrath. These ‘flyers’ also delivered much needed provisions and medical supplies to affected areas. Water was delivered in milk ‘tankers’ to communities where normal facilities were not in working order. President Dwight D. Eisenhower flew over the area on an inspection trip. Governor George M. Leader made several trips to various sections of the stricken areas.” (McCarthy. “200 Years…Susquehanna…,” Wyoming Valley Observer, 2 July 1972, 345.)

Rhode Island

Aug 20, AP: “Woonsocket, R. I. (AP) – Collapse early today of the Rice City Dam in North Uxbridge, Mass., sent a five foot wall of water surging down the Blackstone River toward this industrial city of 50,000, already under a state of emergency. The state of emergency was declared last night by Gov. Dennis J. Roberts and Woonsocket Mayor Kevin A. Coleman after rain-swollen Horseshoe Dam burst, flooding a four mile square congested tenement and small store area. Some 500 families were evacuated.

“Gov. Roberts and John M. McGreevy, civil defense administrator and acting state adjutant general, plan to visit the Woonsocket area today. McGreevy has been here since yesterday.

“The River Street Bridge in the center of the city was carried away early today. White-capped water surged under the Cobblestone Globe Street Bridge.

“In Pawtucket, about 100 families were evacuated from 50 to 60 homes and several tenement blocks.” (Associated Press. “Woonsocket Flood Still on Rise; Second Dam Bursts.” Berkshire Evening Eagle, Pittsfield, MA. 8-20-1955, p. 1.)

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