By 1957, the Buffalo Mining Company, as part of its strip mining operations, began dumping gob mine waste consisting of mine dust, shale, clay, low-quality coal, and other impurities into the Middle Fork branch. motions due. To counter Eriksons claims, Ewen and Lewis include survivor testimony that he neglected. Jamie Goodman/Brian Sewell, Remembering Buffalo Creek, The Appalachian Voice, February 21, 2012. This resolution was passed in spirit only. For additional stories at this website on the history of coal and coal mining, see for example, the following: Thanks for visiting and if you like what you find here, please. State of West Virginia sued Pittston in both state and federal court for the states Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. ), 400 Still Missing in West Virginia Flood, February 28, 1972. 45, No. The Citizens report also noted that strip mining above the dam had likely contributed to its over-filling. Court to make the plaintiffs state their dollar damage claims with more particularity. Jack Spadaro, a mine safety investigator and environmental specialist, has made it his lifes work to prevent such disasters from happening again. The United States declined to sue Pittston for cleanup costs. dvidovich@hdmediallc.com, House passes religious freedoms bill after attempts to amend fail, WV Senate passes bill aimed at strengthening flood resiliency, Blevins resigns as Man mayor; Fekete appointed, Cline's charges referred to Grand Jury; bond reduction request denied, Chapmanville girls beat Liberty Raleigh, Mingo Central to win sectional title, Dwight Williamson: Racism lived in Logan County in the 1950s, and still does, Amid heated exchange, Chapmanville council rescinds $2,000 sports donation, Townsend sworn in to Chapmanville Police Department, Dwight Williamson: Former baseball player from Holden barely remembered today, Two dead after head-on crash on Buffalo Creek, Beckett: City pursuing inspection process for residential electric hookups. Buffalo Creek Coal Mine, Logan County, WV Written at SFSU in 2017 About 45 years ago, at the U.S.' coal mining peak, the country had one of its worst mining-related disasters at Buffalo Creek, Logan County, West Virginia [1]. February 25Because of heavy rains, dam #3 was rising 1-2 inches per hour. More than a dozen towns were inundated and 125 people lost their lives. Gertie Moore, a former Logan County Schools bus driver, tearfully recalls two children who perished in the Buffalo Creek Flood during a memorial service at the Buffalo Creek Memorial Library on Friday, Feb. 24. The water was there, and then it was gone, The moving wall of wastewater did its damage in seconds, in repeated fashion, as it moved down the hollow. Support JSTOR Daily! The tragedy resulted in a $13.5 million class action settlement, and led to the 1973 Dam . Depta recalls the trailers brought in by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to set up temporary living for the newly homeless. And it also continued dumping its coal wastes in the area as well, absent the use of watery waste dams. 300 acre-feet of water would be: According to Young, Appalachia is a region discarded as an expendable population. But exploring how these negative stereotypes promote such attitudes can sharpen our understanding and ability to fight the treatment of all current and future oppressed groups.. Arnold & Porters medical and psychological experts started interviewing and The. were provided to Stern. 3 every day. TVAs spill was from a coal ash impoundment, which is somewhat different than a mine-site slurry impoundment, as it deals with post-combustion, powerplant coal ash, which involves a different regulatory arena than mine-site or coal processing impoundments. And people died instantly when that tidal wave came through the valley.. Homes were left in splinters Railroad tracks yanked up and twisted. Pittston announced in 1999 that it was leaving the coal business. Senator Ed Muskie (D-NH) in one photo, then running for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination, shown campaigning ahead of the New Hampshire primary. April 16, 1973Plaintiffs moved to amend their complaint to add additional Logan County West Virginia Man, 1997. PopHistoryDig.com, January 31, 2019. amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; A separate settlement for survivors amounted to about $13,000 per plaintiff. Set during the Polish-Soviet War of 19191920, Babels novel captured the indiscriminate violence and injustice of warfare. One of the country's worst mining-related disasters occurred February 26, 1972, on Buffalo Creek in Logan County. The state Legislature had sued Pittston for $100 million. More than 507 homes were destroyed, along with 44 mobile homes and 30 businesses. A German immigrant from Munich, John Popp (1832-1922) arrived in the U.S. in 1851 and settled in Wheeling. process loss claims without admitting any responsibility. EPA has made hazard ratings for hundreds of coal combustion waste ponds and impoundments in the U.S., ranking them for the public safety dangers and environmental risks they would pose in the event of failure. Harry Caudill's "Theirs Be The Power". [W]e decided we would band together and hope it would relieve our tensions and fears, stated one member of the group. You may opt-out anytime by clicking "unsubscribe" from the newsletter or from your account. Vintage. Craig Ammerman, Eight More Bodies Found; Logan Flood Toll Climbs to 84, Charleston Gazette, March 3, 1972. When that report came out it called for new legislation and further inquiry by the local prosecutor, also concluding: Norm Williams, Deputy Director, WV-DNR & Citizens' Commission chairman. But this dam dam No. Erikson, a Yale professor when he arrived in Buffalo Creek, is one such outsider, having no connection to the region until he was brought in as an expert witness. When the water set it down again, it just flattened out on the ground. Mary Walton, Triangle of Blame Placed in Disaster, Charleston Gazette, May 30, 1972, p.1. However, adequate funding was never appropriated by teh West Virginia legislature to enforce the law. The governors acquiescence proved costly for the state, as West Virginia ended up forced to reimburse the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers $9 million for recovery work. Less than a year later, in February 1971, Dam No. No evidence of an act of God was found by the Commission. After its pH level and temperature were checked, the creek was returned to the Division of Natural Resources trout stocking program in 2006 after a 34-year hiatus. ", Dealing with Disasters: Some Thoughts on the Adequacy of the Legal System, Coming from West Virginia: An Interview with Songwriter Tom Breiding, The Legendary Language of the Appalachian Holler, Prisoners Like Us: German POW and Black American Solidarity, Hysteria, Indigenous Identities, and Cocaine Bear, Fast and Pluribus: Impacts of a Globalizing McDonalds, How Rap Taught (Some of) the Hip Hop Generation Black History, About the American Prison Newspapers Collection, Submissions: American Prison Newspapers Collection. It should be widely read, states a 1978 review in the Journal of American Studies: In all its aspectsthe survivors description of the flood and its consequences, the contribution which it makes to an understanding of Appalachian life and to the study of disasters, and its theoretical suggestivenessit is outstanding. Ive got uranium and all kinds of radioactive stuff in my bedroom. Map Feature: Coal Ash Contaminated Sites & Hazard Dams (U.S.), EarthJustice.org. Robert Shogan's 2004 book, "The Battle of Blair Mountain". The physical conditions leading to the failure of the dam are complex and involve a weak foundation and saturated embankment giving rise to failure of the downstream portion of the dam and a sudden total collapse of the remainder of the dam due to liquefaction. Buffalo Creek lives on with a legacy of generational trauma for survivors and their kin, but it is often revisited through a legacy of ongoing industrial disasters, from the aforementioned Elk River chemical spill to the 2006 Sago Mine disaster (which killed twelve) and the 2010 Upper Big Branch Mine disaster (which killed twenty-nine). Many cases can take months if not years to reach trial and settlement. This is the name that will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more. Click for copy. The Buffalo Creek Disaster Memorial, located in Kistler, WV, stands as a reminder of one of the darkest hours in West Virginia history. One resident had even written to the governor a few years earlier saying if something wasnt done about the dams, were all going to be washed away., We saw the water lift up our house. In 1977, Governor Moore, with three days left in office, accepted a settlement offer of $1 million for a suit in which the state sought $100 million from the coal company. U.S. map showing locations of coal ash waste dams, spills, and contamination compiled by Earth Justice. During World War II, almost a half million POWs were interned in the United States, where they forged sympathetic relationships with Black American soldiers. August 8, 1972Congress passed the National Dam Inspection Act. Young ranks the spill as but one more state crime in a long list of state crimes, a list on which Buffalo Creek is also included. I'm interested in (please check all that apply). "300 acres of area covered by water a foot deep". Ben A. Franklin, New York Times News Service, Slag Piles Imperil 5th of State Nader, Charleston Gazette, March 5, 1972. 242-246, Appalachian Journal, Vol. For additional stories at this website on the history of coal and coal mining, see for example, the following: Paradise: 1971 (about a John Prine song, strip mining in Muhlenberg County, KY, and the demise of a small town); Mountain Warrior (profile of Kentucky author and coal-field activist, Harry Caudill, noted for his famous book, Night Comes to The Cumberlands and his life-long critique of Appalachian strip mining); Giant Shovel on I-70 (about strip mining in southeastern Ohio during the 1960s and `70s and the use of giant strip-mining shovels there); Coal & The Kennedys, (featuring Kennedy family involvement with Appalachian coal communities, deep mine safety, environmental protection, and related political issues, 1960s-2010s); Sixteen Tons, 1950s (the famous Tennessee Ernie Ford song and some coal mining history, 1940s-1960s); and, G.E.s Hot Coal Ad, 2005 (a General Electric TV ad that features a new breed of coal miner). Four years after the disaster, in 1976, about 100 families were still living in the government provided mobile homes. Somewhere down in this valley I was born, Breiding sings on the album, adopting the persona of a fourth-generation coal miner who never left home. . Then in December 2008 a second major impoundment breach occurred this time, a failure of a giant 84-acre coal ash impoundment at the Tennessee Valley Authoritys (TVA) Kingston Fossil Plant in eastern Tennessee (photo above). #3 in his inspection report. On Feb. 26, 1972, at approximately 8 a.m., a coal slurry impoundment dam owned by Pittston Coal Company burst . Steve Thompson Witnessed the Buffalo Creek Flood Disaster First Hand. Arnold and Porter gave Pittston a $32.5 million written settlement proposal. A wave of nearly 130 million gallons of water and other material (a total volume estimated to be between 300 and 400 acre-feet) roared down the Buffalo Creek valley at a velocity estimated to be 20 feet per second in its initial three miles. Work began on drafting a settlement. The experts concluded that the victims suffered from Last updated on December 30, 2015. Click to visit that site. Fuquay would also conduct an early field analysis of what happened there. What happened after the Buffalo Creek disaster? The three dams also served as something of a crude pollution-prevention system: filtering, settling out, and retaining the dirty prep plant particles and toxins found in the coal wastewater, also enabling some reuse of the water in processing. The Pittston, meanwhile, would inform its investors that the 1974 settlement that had come with one of the survivors' lawsuits did not impact the company's profit margin. 1. K.T. January 1, 1971Pittstons umbrella insurance underwriters imposed a $1 The Logan prosecutor said at the time that Pittstons failure to receive a state dam license was merely a misdemeanor and that a one-year statute of limitations for prosecutions had lapsed. Consumer Information In fact, the company was cited for over 5,000 safety violations at its mines nationally in 1971. The only warning we had was just a neighbor woman had spotted it and just pulled in front of our house and hollered, Run, the dam has broke! remembered survivor Shirley Marcum. to the one at Buffalo Creek collapses, killing 147 people. President Richard Nixon, then in China, had contacted Moore by phone to promise Federal disaster aid. a claims office in Buffalo Creek.Pittston moved for summary judgment because Pittston By that time he had stopped screaming and drunk so much water and everything I dont what happened to him.. Betty Dotson-Lewis / Brian Sewell, The Day Baby Brucie Died: An Oral History of the Buffalo Creek Flood, The Appalachian Voice, February 27, 2012. (plus appendices, vol. Nearly 50 years later, there are still hundreds of coal waste dams to worry about, as well as other assorted coal waste dangers throughout the U.S. A number of leaks and smaller spills have also occurred. MSHA recognizes those who were impacted in the 1972 flood that killed 125 and injured over 1100 people. Is the unique Appalachian dialect the preserved language of Elizabethan England? Judge Hall suggests selecting 4-5 sample cases on the question of liability. of Law Dean Willard Lorensen) brings no criminal indictments against Pittston. . How the 1972 Buffalo Creek Flood Disaster Forever Changed Appalachia A Book Proposal by Tom Nugent. Buffalo Creek disaster remembered 40 years later The Associated Press The Associated Press Feb 27, 2012 The Tri-State's TRUSTED news source. [I]n true Appalachian fashion, few people are ready to accept the responsibility of leadership is another. Stern has a moment where he wishes the case could go to trial. 79-100. But his pregnant wife couldnt get out; she was trapped in the house. The National Research Council's 2001 report to Congress on coal waste impoundments. Pittston by then had developed a reputation for poor safety practices, and was ranked second nationally in the number of fatal and non-fatal mine accidents. Stereotypesparticularly the white trash stereotypes depicting Appalachians as lazy, ignorant, and hopelessallow for the continued exploitation of Appalachia by industry. June 7, 1974Judge Hall declined to act on Pittstons motion to dismiss plaintiffs One retired coal miner who survived the flood, but who lost his wife, daughter and granddaughter in the disaster, explained what he experienced in one. He said the impoundment failure at Buffalo Creek was accompanied by multiple warnings. 1 (FALL 1999), pp. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Liz Tackett, retired former director of the Buffalo Creek Memorial Library, opens up a memorial service for survivors of the Buffalo Creek Flood on Friday, Feb. 24. Kanawha County Bar Association voted to investigate Arnold & Porters alleged State officials requested a few minor alterations to the impoundment. If your house burned down, youve still got your neighbors. spillway on Dam #3. Report of the Citizens Commission to Investigate the Buffalo Creek Disaster, Disaster on Buffalo Creek: A Citizens Report on Criminal Negligence in a West Virginia Mining Community, Charleston, West Virginia, 1972. The pool was within three feet of the crest of the dam, and ominous cracks appeared. November 14, 1970: Marshall University football team killed in plane crash. When the water set it down again, it just flattened out on the ground. The citizens commission report, formally titled. I enjoyed it when I was small., He said the adults decided that if they got the kids involved they wouldnt be as apt to go out and start worrying about getting on drugs or drinking and stuff like that.. Mary Walton, State Warned in 1967 of Larado Dam Danger, Charleston Gazette, March 1, 1972. He also concluded that Pittstons Buffalo Creek Mining Co. could not be charged with negligent homicide because there was no way to put a corporation in jail.. Arch Moore accepted a settlement offer of $1 million from the Pittston Coal Company. September 2, 1972West Virginia Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry into the Kai Erikson's book, "Everything In Its Path: Destruc-tion of Community in The Buffalo Creek Flood". February 26, 2022, was the 50th anniversary of the Buffalo Creek Flood in West Virginia that killed 125 people and left 4,000 homeless. You may unsubscribe at any time by clicking on the provided link on any marketing message. And then you could hear the roar of it and you could see it. West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. Ben A. Franklin, New York Times News Service, Dam Failures Common: Whos Liable for Flooding, Charleston Gazette, February 28, 1972. The lawsuit and the book provide the Your access to this service has been limited. No criminal charges were brought against the mining executives for their negligence in the creation and operation of the illegal and unstable coal waste dams. (2) Stern, G.M. a federal safety standard prohibiting refuse piles from impeding drainage or impounding We publish articles grounded in peer-reviewed research and provide free access to that research for all of our readers. 201 12th StS Tom Nugent, Death at Buffalo Creek: The 1972 West Virginia Flood Disaster, New York: Norton, 1973. MAN, W.Va. (AP) The day before the disaster hit, Perry Harvey went fishing on Buffalo Creek for one reason. June 26, 1974The plaintiffs and Pittston settle for $13.5 million. Congressman Ken Hechler (D-WV)), who also came to the area on Sunday, February 27th, told reporters that the U.S. Bureau of Mines and state agencies had failed to demonstrate sufficient concern for the protection of the safety of the people who work in the mines and live in the mining communities. Hechler also pointed to what he believed was a contributing cause of the flooding: As I looked through Buffalo Creek valley yesterday, it struck me again that the entire valley is honeycombed with strip mines and the waste from deep mines so that the soil can no longer hold the [rain] water. Hechler also slammed the coal industrys power in the area, saying, the people are prisoners of the coal industry And with some irony, he added, the only building left intact in one Buffalo community was the company store., On Monday, February 28th, U.S. Two Films 1975 and 1984, Appalshop.org. himself from the case because of his friendship with Pittstons president. I was terrified of water because I lived through it as a kid and I was just traumatized, but I tell you what, after that dam broke and I seen what I seen, I never was afraid of water again. Buffalo Creek Flood released its report.The Commission concluded after eight public Buffalo Creek Disaster Gerald M. Stern 3.68 2,196 ratings176 reviews One Saturday morning in February 1972, an impoundment dam owned by the Pittston Coal Company burst, sending a 130 million gallon, 25 foot tidal wave of water, sludge, and debris crashing into southern West Virginia's Buffalo Creek hollow. The Buffalo Creek Flood and Disaster: Official Report From the Governors Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry, 1973 (as posted at: wvculture.org). Coal and Labor Collection, Appalachian Collection, McConnell Library, Radford University, Radford, Virginia. U.S. The Charleston Gazette of February 1972 reporting on the early flood death total, with front-page photo of damaged homes thrown about on the valley floor. According to the U.S. EPA, there are over 1,000 operating coal ash waste ponds and landfills, plus many hundreds of retired coal ash disposal sites. Jack Doyle, Buffalo Creek Disaster: 1972, After the 1972 Buffalo Creek disaster, Gov. In 1977, Gov. On February 26, 1972, tragedy struck a small mining community in the coalfields of southern West Virginia. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Mannix Porterfield, a reporter who covered the events of that tragic day, later recalled the destruction left in the floods wake. Although its velocity gradually decreased as it traveled down the valley, the event caused death and destruction as far as 15 miles downstream of the dams. Julie Robinson, Buffalo Creek Miracle Baby Tells Story to Readers Digest, Charleston Gazette, January 26, 2013. Judge Hall ruled that the plaintiffs survivor-syndrome claims might exceed $10,000 The state had initially sued for $100 million, half of which was slated to cover cleanup and restoration expenses. The socio-psychology of all this was probed and covered in an award-winning 1976 book by Kai T. Erikson. amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "thpohidill-20"; The survivors were not allowed to address the meeting. It would go this way on this side of the hill and take a house out; take one house out of all the rows, and then go back the other way. They looked like huge metallic pretzels. The toxic coal slurry poured into Kentuckys Coldwater and Wolf creeks, then to the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River, traveling more than 70 miles downstream, and eventually reaching the Ohio River, with blackwater visible at Cincinnati. Buffalo Creek Mine Disaster: Feb. 26, 1972. In the blink of an eye, people's lives completely changed; lives were lost, houses were gone and families were destroyed. Williams explained that such mining was only viable because the state allowed it to externalize costs i.e., impose its pollution, mine wastes, and environmental damage on landowners and the general public. 1945The Lorado Coal Company opened a coal mine at Buffalo Creek and began The company was operating eight mines in the vicinity and ran all the coal through the preparation plant above the dams. February 26, 2022, marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most devastating mine disasters in U.S. history. One resident at the scene, later quoted in in Kai T. Eriksons book. Were owned by the coal company. Roads werent where they used to be, nor were houses. That deal would dog Moore for the rest of his career. Pittston Quits the Coal Business, Buffalo CreekFlood.org. Thomas Andrews' "Killing for Coal". BUFFALO CREEK, W.Va Sunday marked the 45th anniversary of the deadly Buffalo Creek disaster in Logan . And this was just another little installment in the progression of a hard life, I guess., Congressman Ken Hechler put it a little more bluntly. Were going to live here as long as he works here, she said, adding that without the dam, we could be over here safely.. 3 failed. It just broke your heart to see firsthand the devastation that water could do, he would tell a Herald Dispatch reporter. They lost loved ones, their homes, their neighbors, their community. A bulldozer slid into the pond and its driver died. Press Release, New Federal Standards Needed for Storing Coal Waste, National Research Council (Washington, DC), October 21, 2001. Spadaro also wrote the bulk of the states report debunking Pittstons claim that the disaster was an act of God. An investigation found the company built the dam on top of coal slurry that had been deposited by an earlier dam, then more material went on top of that. Destroyed homes and businesses are piled up against each other in the Dingess Hollow area of Lorado, W.Va., after the Buffalo Creek Dam broke on Feb. 26, 1972. psychic injury while they were physically away from Buffalo Creek during the flood. MAN - Monday marked the 46th anniversary of the Buffalo Creek Flood. F.3d 349 (4th Cir. Each upstream dam was built several hundred yards upstream of the previous dam. The loss of more than 100 people in the Buffalo Creek disaster half a century ago . For outsiders, these stereotypes dehumanize the exploited individuals. Tom Breiding, a Pittsburgh singer-songwriter with West Virginia roots, saw this firsthand when he traveled to Buffalo Creek for research while composing his 2008 album The Unbroken Circle: Songs of the West Virginia Coalfields. The state sued the company for $100,000,000 dollars but then Gov. plaintiffs. 16, No. BMCfilled the hole with more coal refuse. Published: Feb. 27, 2022 at 12:17 PM PST. Suite 401 Dam No. The Buffalo Creek Flood was a disaster that occurred in 1972 in West Virginia. Low 54F. Click for copy. Volunteers picked up trash around the creek. Teaching with Reveal Digitals American Prison Newspapers Collection, a finalist for the National Book Award the year of its release, Buffalo Creek Revisited: Deconstructing Kai Eriksons Stereotypes,, The Rumble and the Dark: Regional Newspaper Framing of the Buffalo Creek Mine Disaster of 1972, Resilience in Post Disaster Societies: From Crisis to Development, Buffalo Creek Revisited: Deconstructing Kai Erikson's Stereotypes, "Do We Really Want to Go Down That Path? Total property damage was estimated at $50 million (about $340 million in 2022 dollars). In the U.S. Congress at the time, federal legislation was being considered to regulate strip mining, and the Buffalo Creek disaster figured into the debate. At the time, the EPA called it the worst environmental disaster in the southeast United States. The coal company called it an act of God (sound familiar?). His words paint a picture of a bleak future for a people suffering from a cyclical system of abuse. Rita Colistra, The Rumble and The Dark: Regional Newspaper Framing of the Buffalo Creek Mine Disaster of 1972, Journal of Appalachian Studies, Vol. Note mud lines on the building at left, marking flood level. Residents were just awakening that Saturday morning; some entire families were still in bed. In just a few brief moments, 125 people were killed, 1,100 were injured, and over 4,000 were left without homes [1] as the result of a collapsed coal waste dam. UPI, Buffalo Creek Flood Inquiry [i.e., special grand jury] Is Off Until After Election, New York Times, September 13, 1972. I told you this was going to happen, he said, I told you. He had voted for Randolph, but was frustrated with the political process and how the locals were regarded by most politicians. The following morning, his wifes birthday, Harvey was on his way to pick up a cake, but police had the road blocked off. Hall added that he is what is known as a prepper who stocks up items like food and supplies in case of an emergency or disaster. Russell Mokhiber, Buffalo Creek, Chapter 5, Corporate Crime & Violence: Big Business Power and the Abuse of the Public Trust, San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1998. The wall of water exploded The problem of coal waste impoundments in Appalachia and all across America has not gone away since the 1972 Buffalo Creek disaster. Specific problems, such as the presence of mine workings near impoundments, are dealt with using sound engineering approaches. The cause of the Buffalo Creek failure was analyzed, an inventory of coal waste impoundments was compiled, and emergency inspections were conducted to identify other potentially hazardous sites. Justice v. Pittston class action by now-Judge Phillip Gaujot on behalf of 348 children Recent history suggests that a number of these facilities and practices hold public safety risks and/or environmental threats. This failure, predicted by inspector results, caused a domino effect by causing the failure of two other dams. UPI photographer Leo Gardner, one of the first outsiders to reach the area reported, Lorado was wiped out. Another early report from the devastation noted: 52 bodies lying on both sides of the road running alongside Buffalo Creek. Some drowned in the floodwaters, while others were buried by landslides, as a thick muck had moved along with the coal water. 2 held and halted the water. WVPB News. Jack Doyle, "Buffalo Creek Disaster: 1972,"PopHistoryDig, January 31, 2019. wvculture/history/buffcreek . Actual death toll would be 125, nearly twice early reports. Click for copy. Like Kalgan mentions these cases sometimes end up "spending more money on litigation costs than on payments that end up in injured plaintiffs pockets" (Kagan, 138). March 28Pittston press release stating that it had opened offices to By March 2, Republican Governor Arch Moore announced the formation of an Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry to investigate the flood. When forced to give up these long-standing ties with familiar places and people, the . The Buffalo Creek Disaster: The Story of the Survivors' Unprecedented Lawsuit, New York, Random House, 1976. The Buffalo Creek Flood and Disaster: Official Report from the Governors Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry, 1973 (PDF of actual report at Marshall University). From 1962 to 1972, three dams were built in on the middle fork of Buffalo Creek in Logan County. But West Virginia newspapers in the area were covering the tragedy closely, as the grim business of accounting for the dead, injured, and homeless continued. , nor were houses the coalfields of southern West Virginia Flood, February 21, 2012 funding never. 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York: Norton, 1973 Random house, 1976 investigate arnold & Porters alleged state officials requested few. Was a disaster that occurred in 1972 in West Virginia Legislature to enforce the law the before... Pregnant wife couldnt get out ; she was trapped in the floodwaters, while were. Entire families were still living in the government provided mobile homes and 30 businesses trial! He neglected in 2022 dollars ) mine disasters in U.S. History frustrated with the coal company burst houses. Novel captured the indiscriminate violence and injustice of warfare the lawsuit and the book provide the your to... Dollar damage claims with more particularity the victims suffered from Last updated on December 30, 1972, on Creek... Down again, it just broke your heart to see firsthand the devastation that water could do, said. No evidence of an act of God, are dealt with using sound approaches. 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Complaint to add additional Logan County West Virginia Department of Housing and Urban Development to set temporary... Effect by causing the failure of two other dams only if there New.