OCR Text |
Show Cause CalIse of Record ReCOl1td Floods FloodsAssigned FloodsAssigned FloodsAssigned . Assigned to Topography = ' " Crowded V Valleys ValIeys alIeys Helpless HelplessVictims HelplessVictims Victims of Rivers . Washington - "Record Record "fiecord fiecord " floods floodscausing , , causmg causing enormous property damageIn damage In western Pennsylvania Penneylvanla ; and west west- western western - . ern ' Maryland 'Iaryland Iaryland call attention to the thepeculiar thepeculiar thepeculiar peculiar topography of these re reglom regions reglons glom gions ; , where the Industrial nnd and nndcommercial andcommercial andcommercial commercial sections of the largest largestcWes largestcities largestcities cWes cities are cro crowded " ded along steep rl\ rl rler riser riserbanks n\erbanks n erbanks \ er erbnnhs bnnhs banks in narrow narro\v narro v narrovIlers \ villevs \Ilers Ilers aallevs \ ' \ " savs sass sa ; } ' s theNational the theNational theNational National Geognphic Geogr'lphlc Geogrlphlc Geographic ' society . 'When When ' e excessive excesslse cessh e rainfall and andmelting andmelting andmelting melting snow raise the headwaters headwatersof of the pnncipil pnncp11 prrnclpil [ streims stre'1m stre1m streimc ' floods fol follow follow follow low " with "itb itb terrifying terrifv terrlf ; } Ing suddenness In Insuch insuch Insuch such closely " walled "ailed ailed rivers as the thelIonongahela theMonongahela theMonongahela l\Ionongahela l Ionongahela Monongahela \ , Youghiogheny Youghlogbeny , AIlegheny ABe Alle ABeghcny Allegheny ghcny gheny . , Beiver Be1\er Be1 er Bearer \ , . , Conemaugh , the Up Upper Upper Upper per Ohio , and the upper Potomac"With Potomac"With Potomac Potomac"With "With With " no lowlands and almost no noIslands noislands noislands Islands to spread upon and loseforce lose loseforce loseforce force , flood fiood waters quickly qulchly attain : _ u _ _ _ I are all within the reich re'lcb relcb reach ' of ot flood floodwaters floodwaters floodwaters waters About once a decade base basements basements basements ments are flooded and river shIp shIpping shipping shipping ping endangered The principal principalmenace principalmenace principalmenace menace , e\ e even een esen \ en In times of minor minorfloods minorfloods minorfloods floods , however , Is to health be because because because cause rl rising mg river rher riser waters back up upthe upthe upthe the sewers and sometimes con contam contammate contamInate tam tamnate nate mate [ drinking drml.ing drmling . waterThickly waterThickly water waterThickly Thickly Settled Valleys'Duting Valleys Valleys'Dm DUlIng 'Duting Duting 'Dm Dm ' Ing a flood about ten ye'1rs ye1rs yeirs ye'1rsago yeirsago yeirsago ' ago a newspaper In IcKeesport McKeesport McKeesportPa , Pa , had bad to put reporters linotypeoperators linotype linotypeoperators linotypeoperators operators , , and other employees to ton towork towork n work ork hurriedly removing remo\"lng remo "lng lng \ " huge roHs rolls roHsof rollsof rollsof of newsprint newsprmt stored in the b1se base basemeat b1sement bisement ment meat . . If the rJsll1 rising water had hadre1ched hadretched hadreichcd re1ched retched this paper , the rolls wouldhave would wouldha wouldhave ha have ve s\\ s swelled seHed \ " eHed and wrecked wrecI.ed wrecIed . the bulld build bulldIng buildlag buildIng Ing lag Ing'One 'One One ' One of ot the contributing factors factorsto factorsto to floods in western Pennsyla Pennsylvinli Pennsyh'1nh Pennsyh1nh inii ' Is Isthe isthe isthe the growth of to\\ to towns tons \ ns and cities thus thusdiminishing thusdiminishing thusdiminishing diminishing the number of trees and andshrubs andshrubs andshrubs shrubs that help the soli soil 01J to retain retainmoisture retainmoisture retainmoisture moisture Whole hillsides along the theMonong1hela theMonongahela theMonongihela Monong1hela Monongahela , also have hale ha , e been neirly ne'lr nelr near ne'lrIy nearly ' Iy ly denuded of verdure by overcut overcuttlng overcuttlng overcutting tlng and by constant clouds of acrid acridfumes acridfumes acridfumes fumes and smoke smohe from Industries inthe In Inthe Inthe the villey v\Hey v Hey valley ' \ The vallevs valleys valle ; } s are tlllcb.ly tlllcbly thickly tlllcb.lysettled thicklysettled thicklysettled . settled , and rainwater rnmwater fio flows " s rapidly rapidlyfrom rapidlyfrom rapidlyfrom from roofs and pived p1Ved paved streets Into Intose Intosewers Intosewers se\\ se seers sewers \ ers and rivers rivers"Although riversII rivers"Although "Although Although .o\1though .o1though .o o 1though II " . \ there are a number ot of otgovernment ofgovernment ofgovernment government dams In the Ohio OhioMonongahela , 1\1onongahela 1 1onongahela Monongahela \ , and the Allegheny Alleghenythey , they are low structures used prm prin prmcipally principally pnncipally cipally to provide a sufficient depth depthfor depthfor depthfor for the heavy barge trade traffic on these thesestreams thesestreams thesestreams streams " . - destructive velocities tliat that sweep sweepeverythIng sweepeverything sweepeverything everythIng before them Pridges Prtdges Pridgeshouses , , hou houses es and c even ' en fair sized si7cd huih11ngs buildings huih11ngsoften buildingsoften buildingsoften often become waterborne " water "ater ater borne b'1tterIng b1tterIng battering batteringrams b'1tterIngrams bittcringrams ' rams to knock hnock down do " n other bridgeshouses brllges bridges ( , , houses and buildingsindustries buildings bu1Jdlngs buildingsIndustries Industries Near River River"In RiverIn . "In In " tlie the Pittsburgh district , In 1n par- par partIcular par.ticular particular - . . tIcular titular , , floods arc are dreaded bec'luse becluse because becausemost bec'lusemost beciusemost ' most of the Important electric light lightwater , water purifying and gis g1S plants are arecrowded arecrowded ancrowded crowded close closc to the rivers ri\"ers ri "ers ers \ " and andessential andessential amessential essential services often break down downwhen downwhen dowrwhen when rIsinwaters rising rIsin/ rIsin / : waters flood basements basementsextinguishing , e tlng11lshlng extinguishing boilers or crippHn crIppling crIpplingmachinery cripplingmachinery { machinery . "Nearly Nearly " all aU the largest industrIes IndustriesIncluding , tncludln Including steel , , tin plate , and alum alumInum alummum alumInum Inum mum mills mlI1c ; , glass works worI.q worIq . packln packing packing.fuel packingfuel : . , fuel oil , and nnd coal storage plants plantsh'1ve plantshive plantshive h'1ve h1ve hive ' their properties on the river riverbanhs riverbanks riverbanks banhs banks or very close to them Shut Shut- Shutdowns Shutdowns - . downs mem me'ln meln mein ' loss of employment employmentnnd employmentand employmentand nnd and of Income to thousands of ofworhers ofworkers ofworkers worhers workers ' ' Experience has bas taught rought tnuglit the rall-roids rall roids rail- rail railr01ds - . r01ds roads to raise rnIse their rights of way wayhigher wayhigher wayhigher higher than valley vnHey floors but In a afew afew afew few places they are low enough to tobe tobe tobe be reached by such snch floods as that of ofrecent ofrecent ofrecent recent occurrence In pioneer days daysthe daysthe daysthe the chief turnpikes turnplJ.es turnplJes . of western Penn PennsylVnla Pennsylvania Pennsylvinia sylV\nla sylV nla sylvania ' \ were \ ere built bulJt along alonl ! : the tbe crestof crest crestor crestof or of ridges that mark mar1 . the level of the theorIginal theoriginal theoriginal orIginal plitcau phteau pliteau , but recently many manyImport'lnt manyimport manyImportint Import'lnt Importlnt import ' int roads have been built tn in tnthe inthe Inthe I tnI the vnHes vnlleys vnllev ; } s , , sandwiched Into a nar nar- narI narrow nar- nar narrow narrow - - row ledge bet between " cen railroads rnUroatls and andsteel andsteel andsteel I steel plints phnts plants , . , or on slag fills at the thevery thevery thevery very edge of the streams These Thesefills TheseI I Oils fills have hale hn \ c further narrowed the theI therivers therivers therivers rivers , and Increased flood hazardsI hazards"Whlle hazards"While hazards hazards"While I "While While "Whlle Whlle " th thp the ( ' newer never , residential resIdentlal residental dls dis dlstrlcts distrlcts districts I trlcts of such clUe cities " ! as PIttsburgh PittsburghJohnstown , JohD3town Johnstown \ McKecsport l\IcKeesport l IcKeesport McKeesport . , IIomestead Homestead HomesteadKist , . 118t gist ; ' Pittsburgh . , . Braddock Braddocb . . , Morgan- Morgan Morganto1n Morgan-town Morgan town - . to\1n to 1n town \ . , and nnd Cumbcriind CumberJ\nd CumberJ nd Cumberland ' \ are In the thehills thehills thehills hills tlie the business buslnes < ; districts , and the thecrowdcd thecrowded thecrowded crowdcd crowded older residential districts , , |