Early in the morning on April 22nd, 1927, flood waters from a break in the Mound Landing levee entered the town of Greenville, Mississippi. Within hours, the town was submerged in 10 feet of water. Thousands of residents fought to reach higher ground, desperately clinging to tree tops and floating houses.The flood inundated 27,000 square miles in seven state ... Show More
Jun 2022
The Great Mississippi Flood | Media Storm | 4
In 1927, a slow-moving catastrophe like the Great Mississippi Flood was perfect material for a relatively new medium: radio. Over the airwaves, the flood became the first natural disaster that Americans could follow almost in real time, day by day, as the rising river waters swep ... Show More
40m 51s
Aug 2023
Hurricane Katrina | Stranded | 2
Officials learn that the storm surge from Katrina has breached New Orleans’s levees, allowing water to pour into the city. Soon, 80 percent of New Orleans is underwater. Many residents become trapped in their homes, and are forced to climb into their attics and onto rooftops, as ... Show More
44m 28s
Nov 2023
The Hoover Dam is Ridiculous, Part Two: The Audacity!
As the railroads tried and failed to control flooding in the Salton Sink, state and federal leaders realized America needed a bigger solution. With the Great Depression in full swing, workers from across the country traveled to Vegas in hopes of working on the Hoover Dam. In the ... Show More
32m 18s
Sep 2023
Hurricane Katrina | We Were Here | 4
At long last, the government’s rescue effort kicks into high gear and buses arrive to evacuate people from New Orleans. But it’s too late for many residents, who died in their homes waiting to be rescued. Thousands of people’s lives are shattered, and the damage to the city is ex ... Show More
43m 31s
Feb 2024
Johnstown Flood | Cascade | 3
Despite the efforts of engineer John Parke, the South Fork Dam does break. The ensuing flash flood sweeps up a vast, moving wall of debris: mud, rocks, trees, fragments of bridges and smashed-up houses. Residents in Johnstown, including Reverend H.L. Chapman and his family, have ... Show More
40m 3s
Feb 2024
Johnstown Flood | The Dam | 1
It’s May, 30th 1889, and the South Fork Dam in Western Pennsylvania is in danger. After nearly a month of hard rain, eight inches have fallen in one day, filling the lake behind the dam to capacity. And the dam’s owners, the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club, have cut corners i ... Show More
47m 2s
Aug 2022
Mississippi’s Crisis Over Troubled Water
The city of Jackson, Mississippi is under a state of emergency because of ongoing problems with its troubled water system, leaving residents without safe drinking water.Officials in Pakistan say one-third of that country has been submerged by catastrophic flooding, which has left ... Show More
17m 54s
Aug 2023
Hurricane Katrina | Beyond Critical | 3
Days after Hurricane Katrina floods their city, residents of New Orleans become increasingly desperate, as the government bungles the rescue effort. Using doors and other items to make improvised rafts, people make their way from their flooded homes to the Superdome and the Conve ... Show More
42m 41s