Over the past few weeks I have been spending much of my driving time listening to the audiobook of David McCollough’s book on the Johnstown Flood. It is an absolutely fascinating story (and read by Edward Herrmann, who has a perfect voice for such readings).
So for anyone looking for an interesting story I highly commend either the audio or print version of the story, which tells not only the story of the flood itself but the full background of the construction of the dam, the settlement of the region, the stories of the people who live in the town and so on.
It is the kind of story where you find yourself devastated when characters you have spend 5 discs getting to know are suddenly swept away by the raging waters (even when you realize all the survivors have also been dead for decades).
The images of the flood are heart stopping in many cases. For example the water *averaged* a wall 20 feet high traveling at 20 mph and reached peaks of 70 feet high going 40 mph. So imagine yourself watching a 2 story wall of water close on you at the rate of 1 football field every 10-15 seconds.
The book also explores the fact that while certainly those who ran the club that owned the dam deserve a lot of blame for what happened, not everything is as cut and dry as it might seem.
For example, on the day the dam collapsed there was an employee of the club who was acting as the supervisor of the facility. He could see that the situation was dire, and one of his options was to cut a hole in one side of the dam to let more water flow out. This would make failure of the dam a certainty but might also allow some time for the water level to lower before the collapse and thus reduce the damage.
Now on the surface that would seem an easy choice, working to save lives. But while it was clear than the dam was in trouble it was by no means certain it would fail. If the man ordered the dam cut, the dam would fail and he would be responsible, which could mean civil and criminal liability.
Put yourself in his place and ponder what you would do in that situation ?
Would you place you and your family in jeopardy by making the dam collapse when it might not collapse at all otherwise ?
The book also points out that many of the citizens of Johnstown suspected the dam was unsafe but nobody ever actually did anything about it.
These kinds of extra details are what makes the book very interesting and it prompts a lot of interesting thoughts