130th anniversary of the Great Johnstown Flood
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WJAC) — Friday marked 130 years since the Great Johnstown flood of 1889 – a day that forever changed the city.
To the day 130 years ago, the South Fork Dam burst after days of rainfall.
With almost no warning to the people and towns in its path, 20 million tons of water estimated to have been 40 feet high and carrying the rolling force of the Niagra Falls rushed 14 miles toward the city of Johnstown, taking with it homes, horses, trains and people.
As the enormous wave crashed into Johnstown, houses, many with people still trapped inside, were swept toward Yoder Hill and then back-washed into the city, pushing the debris the wave carried up against the Stone Arch Bridge.
To make matters worse, the debris at the bridge then ignited, creating a raging inferno that burned alive those who survived the wave.
A total of 2,209 people died in the Johnstown flood – about 10 percent of the city’s population at the time.
Those who survived sought shelter in the few buildings that remained.
Within days, the steel mills restarted and the people of Johnstown began to rebuild, proving just how resilient the city was – a resilience that carries on today.
About 750 people were never identified and were buried in the plot of the unknown in Grandview Cemetery.
Friday, the friends of the Johnstown Flood National Memorial are reading the names of the flood victims and at 7 p.m., South Fork Dam and Visitor Center will be illuminated in honor of those lost.
The Visitor Center is open too until 10 p.m. where a statue of Mary is on display.
The park movie will be playing at 15 minutes past each hour, the last one showing at 9:15 p.m.
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