Essay on Johnstown Flood Disaster

On August 29, 2005, the third strongest and biggest hurricane ever recorded in American history hit the Gulf Coast at eight o’clock a.m. The interaction between a tropical depression and a tropical wave created a tropical storm later referred to as Hurricane Katrina (FAQS, 2013). Forming over the Bahamas, Hurricane Katrina gradually strengthened as it moved closer and closer to the Gulf of Mexico. Recorded on August 28th, 2005, Katrina jumped from a category three storm to a category five storm with maximum sustained winds up to 160 miles per hour. Although other hurricanes, such as Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Wilma, exceeded Katrina, this dominant storm was classified as the fourth most intense hurricane

Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest hurricanes ever to hit the United States. Hurricane Katrina started out as any other hurricane, as the result of warm moisture and air from the oceans surface that built into storm clouds and pushed around by strong forceful winds until it became a powerful storm. Hurricane Katrina formed over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005 and crossed southern Florida as a moderate Category 1 hurricane, causing some deaths and flooding there before strengthening rapidly in the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane over the warm Gulf water, but weakened before making its second landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on the morning of Monday, August 29 in southeast

Hurricane Sandy was a tropical cyclone that devastated portions of the Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States in late October 2012. The eighteenth named storm and tenth hurricane of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, Sandy was the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, as measured by diameter, with winds spanning 1,100 miles. Sandy is estimated in early calculations to have caused damage of at least $20 billion. Preliminary estimates of losses that include business interruption surpass $50 billion, which, if confirmed, would make it the second-costliest Atlantic hurricane in history, behind only Hurricane Katrina.

The most important aspect in managing a disaster situation is preparedness. The simulation Disaster in Franklin County highlights the role of public health personnel, with emphasis on the public health nurse because the nurse is often a first responder to such a disaster. This helps to examine the roles, actions, coping methods, and techniques used by a nurse in a disaster scenario.

However, the dams were of faulty construction. Dam number one which caused the flooding was constructed of coarse mining refuse that Pittston had dumped into the Middle Fork of Buffalo Creek starting in 1968. This dam failed first on the heels of heavy rains. The water from Dam number three then took out dams number two and then number one. Dam number three had simply

Just after Dam No. 3 started to show symptoms of collapsing, the Pittson Company sent a bulldozer to dig a drainage pitch in an attempt to alleviate some pressure.

On May 31, 1889, a 35-foot-high wall of water, set loose by days of rain and a failed dam, rushed into the city of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. In its wake, most of the town was destroyed and more than 2,200 lives were lost. The Johnstown Flood was one of the worst natural disasters ever seen in the United States and brought in relief from all over the nation and world. For Clara Barton, the Johnstown Flood disaster was the first test for her newly formed Red Cross. About 3:00 p.m. on May 31, 1889, water had backed up to the point where it began to spill over the South Ford Dam. It wasn't long before the entire dam broke, sending 20 million tons of water rushing down the narrow Conemaugh Valley. The "terrible wave" reportedly sounded like a freight

|collapsed in the Buffalo Creek Valley. Over 130 million gallons of water and waste material devastated Buffalo Creek's sixteen |

(Erikson p. 25) The Buffalo Coal Company decided to stack this waste at the top of the mountains which after a while created a dam. This "sludge water" was dumped in nearby lakes which they stopped because this water would end up in the streams that lead to the town. They then disposed of the water behind the dam which held up to over 130 million gallons of waste. There was a non-stop rain plaguing this area throughout the whole month of February. This rain continued to fill this dam, and on February 26, 1972 that dam collapsed causing this valley to fill with slag water. Residents explained hearing explosions and it feeling like an earthquake as the flood began. In only a few hours most of Buffalo Creek had been washed away into the Guyandotte River. After most of the water left the scene could be described as something out of a war movie; wreckage, bodies lying everywhere. The Buffalo Creek government creates aid for survivors of this disaster by offering trailer homes and other relief processes. The book has a lot of witness accounts what it was like actually going through this. I found out that The Environmental Protection Agency was enacted in 1970 and by this time the Buffalo Mining Company had already been dumping their sludge and waste water

Gas prices are considered to be returning to normal as most of the oil refineries are reopening following the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey. Many of the drivers in Houston were affected by the increase in gas prices and long lines at the gas stations when Hurricane Harvey hit. Due to Harvey’s landfall, it caused most of the Texas population to flock to the pumps, in fear of a long-term gas shortage. Denton Cinquegrana, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service stated, “The national average gas price has peaked to $2.67, following the hurricane. This was around a 35-cent increase from pre-Harvey levels.” The increase in gas prices was a “result of coastal oil refineries electing to shut down, rather than wanting to

Hurricane Katrina struck the city of New Orleans, Louisiana on August 29th, 2005. The events that followed would leave the whole nation in shock until this day. One of the major topics of discussion after this disaster was whether or not the government's slow reaction time had anything to do with the fact that New Orleans is sixty-seven percent African American. As helicopters circled a wasteland that was once a major tourist attraction, the racism of the Deep South, thought to be extinct, proved it was only dormant. The same racism against African Americans that could be seen on Bourbon Street in the months prior to the hurricane reared its ugly head once more in Gretna, LA and was pointed out on live television by rapper Kanye West.

“Johnstown flood” is a short story written by David McCullough. This story talks about the miraculous survival of a little girl named Gertrude. Gertrude’s sheer luck got her up the hill safely. Of course, with the help of several people she met along the way. I think that this is an extraordinary act of how worked together and some people put his/her life at risk to save a small child that they didn’t even knew. I fell that this is a great example of how human beings come together in times of need and extreme danger and in the way that we try to protect ourselves from disaster.

Hurricane Katrina hit the southern coast of the United States on August 28, 2005. The center of Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans on the morning of August 29, 2005. The devastating effect of this hurricane resulted in more than 1,800 citizens losing their lives, as well as more than an estimated $81 billion dollars in damages occurred. By August 31, 2005, eighty-percent of the city became submerged under water because the storm surge breached the city's levees at multiple points. If the levees are damaged massive water will flood Louisiana from the Gulf Coast, the Mississippi River, and other surrounding bodies of water. Some areas of New Orleans were 15 feet under water. Winds of Hurricane Katrina reached an astounding category 3 as

“The Year of the Flood” is an epic, sprawling novel that moves back and forth between past, present and future effortlessly. Though it is told from Ren and Toby’s point of view, the novel is really about the story of three women (Ren, Toby, and Amanda) and their will to survive in a cruel and harsh world. It is a story of hope, despite all odds and a story of the power of love.

In a new form of protection and communication, social media is the main thing that everything is using in today’s times. Marketing employees have positions as titled as social media directors. Companies have people watching and monitoring everything that happens with their social media reputation all hours of the day everyday. Young people are seeing the power of social media everyday with teachers demonstrating how fast a picture can be shared across the world. Social media is relatively new and could possibly open many gates for communication. This depends heavily on who is publishing information and news on social media. If news spreads fast on social media, then the use of it can be used for emergencies. If many people are