Buffalo Creek flood
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (February 2011) |
Date | February 26, 1972 |
---|---|
Location | Pittston Coal Company's |
Cause | Coal Mine dam failure |
Casualties | |
125 killed 1,121 injured 4,000+ left homeless |
The Buffalo Creek flood was a disaster that occurred in
The impoundment dam, managed by Pittston Coal Company, had been declared "satisfactory" by a federal mine inspector four days earlier. In its legal filings, Pittston referred to the accident as "an Act of God."[2][3]
Terrain and sequence of events
There were three dams on the site. Dam #3 failed first. Located about 260 feet (79 m) above the town of Saunders, it was built on top of coal slurry sediment that had collected behind dams #1 and #2, instead of on solid bedrock.[4] It was constructed of coarse mining refuse dumped into the Middle Fork of Buffalo Creek.
Dam #3's failure was followed by heavy rains. The water from dam #3 then overwhelmed dams #2 and #1. The resulting flood unleashed approximately 132 million US gallons (500,000 cubic metres; 500 million litres) of black waste water, cresting over 30 feet (9.1 m) high, upon the residents of 16 coal towns along Buffalo Creek Hollow. Out of a population of 5,000 people, 125 were killed,[5] 1,121 were injured, and over 4,000 were left homeless. 507 houses were destroyed, in addition to 44 mobile homes and 30 businesses.[2] The disaster destroyed or damaged homes in Saunders, Pardee, Lorado, Craneco, Lundale, Stowe, Crites, Latrobe, Robinette, Amherstdale, Becco, Fanco, Braeholm, Accoville, Crown and Kistler.[6]
Investigation
Two commissions investigated the disaster. The first, the Governor's Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry, appointed by Governor
The Governor's Commission of Inquiry report
The state of West Virginia also sued the Buffalo Creek-Pittston Coal Company for $100 million (equivalent to $503 million today) in disaster and relief damages, but a smaller settlement was reached for just $1 million ($5 million today) with Governor Moore, three days before he left office in 1977. The lawyers for the plaintiffs, Arnold & Porter of Washington, D.C., donated a portion of their legal fees for the construction of a new community center. West Virginia has yet to build the center, though the center was promised by Governor Moore in May 1972.[10]
Gerald M. Stern, an attorney with Arnold & Porter, wrote a book entitled The Buffalo Creek Disaster about representing the victims of the flood. The book includes descriptions of his experiences dealing with the political and legal environment of West Virginia, where the influence of large coal mining corporations is intensely significant to the local culture and communities.
Simpson-Housley and De Man (1989) found that, 17 years later, the residents of Buffalo Creek scored higher on a measure of trait anxiety in comparison to the residents of Kopperston, a nearby coal town that did not experience the flood.[13]
Results
Dennis Prince and some 625 survivors of the flood sued the Pittston Coal Company, seeking $64 million in damages (equivalent to $395.4 million today). They settled in June 1974 for $13.5 million ($83.4 million today), or approximately $13,000 for each individual after legal costs ($80,000 today). A second suit was filed by 348 child survivors, who sought $225 million ($1.39 billion today); they settled for $4.8 million in June 1974 ($29.7 million today).[14]
Kerry Albright became known as the "miracle baby" of the disaster. Running from the leading edge of the water, his mother threw him just above the flood level moments before she drowned. He survived with few ill effects, and was reared by his father. His survival gave hope and inspiration to other survivors.[15]
Environmental impacts
Prior to the disaster, Buffalo Creek was a popular fishing spot. Due to the effects of the flood, Buffalo Creek would not support aquatic life "long after the Feb. 26, 1972 disaster", according to a 2022 account by The Associated Press. After extensive cleanup and remediation efforts, trout restocking began in 2006. By February 2022, 50 years after the accident, trout were once again plentiful in Buffalo Creek.[16]
See also
- Aberfan disaster
- Coal slurry
- Martin County coal slurry spill
- Sludge (film)
- The Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man, a 1974 documentary film about the disaster
References
- ^ "Coal disaster 50 years later: W.Va. creek teeming with fish". Associated Press. 27 Feb 2022.
- ^ a b Rhee, William. "Buffalo Creek Timeline | College of Law | West Virginia University". www.law.wvu.edu. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ "Associated Press op cit".
- ^ Ziege, Nicole (25 February 2022). "50 years later: could a Buffalo Creek disaster happen again?". Appalachian News-Express. Appalachian Newspapers. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ "Associated Press op cit".
- ^ "Towns Along Buffalo Creek". www.wvculture.org. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ "The Buffalo Creek Disaster: Official Report From The Governor's Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry" Archived 2015-09-06 at the Wayback Machine (PDF).
- ^ "Disaster on Buffalo Creek: A Citizen's Report on Criminal Negligence in a West Virginia Mining Community" Archived 2019-04-11 at the Wayback Machine (PDF).
- ^ Montrie, Chad (2003). To Save the Land and People: A History of Opposition to Surface Coal Mining in Appalachia. The University of North Carolina Press. pp. 122.
- ^ "Rebuilding A Community: The Buffalo Creek Case". Arnold and Porter. 1996. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
- ISBN 0-671-24067-6.
- ProQuest 206714941
- S2CID 44679076.
- ^ "Buffalo Creek Legal Suites". www.marshall.edu. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
- ^ "Buffalo Creek 'miracle baby' tells story to Reader's Digest". www.webcitation.org. Archived from the original on 2013-05-29.
- ^ "Associated Press op cit".
Bibliography
- Kai T. Erikson (1976). Everything in Its Path. Simon and Schuster. pp. 284. ISBN 0-671-24067-6.
- Gerald M. Stern, The Buffalo Creek Disaster ISBN 0-394-72343-0
External links
- "Voices of Buffalo Creek". Charleston Gazette. Archived from the original on April 5, 2005. Retrieved April 27, 2005.
- "The Buffalo Creek Disaster". West Virginia and Regional History Center. 3 February 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
- "Buffalo Creek Flood". Marshall University Special Collections. Archived from the original on March 2, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- "Buffalo Creek Flood". West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Retrieved October 28, 2007.
- "Survivor recounts Buffalo Creek disaster". West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on September 28, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2009.
- "Guide to the Council of Southern Mountains Records includes documents pertaining to Buffalo Creek interviews, articles, activism". Berea College Special Collections and Archives. Archived from the original on June 25, 2009. Retrieved August 3, 2009.